Fisheries committee  I wouldn't want to target one group, and I think, certainly, that needs to be looked at. We all know, and certainly you would, sir, that the value of lobster skyrocketed in the last few years, and it's a very valuable commodity. When there's money out there and big money to be made, people get involved who normally wouldn't.

Fisheries committee  We work with our colleagues in Quebec on a regular basis on a number of issues. We're dealing with a lot of other things, but we haven't had direct conversations about that. Could you be a little more specific?

Fisheries committee  I would suggest that we're doing that now, but there's always room, I'm sure, for more dialogue. It's a concern, because we're threatening the future of the fishery for everyone.

Fisheries committee  Certainly. That's why we've been an advocate for higher fines, stiffer fines, suspensions and whatever it takes to send a strong message. That's the concern, that it becomes the cost of doing business for some people.

Fisheries committee  We have seen an improvement in P.E.I. in terms of fines being increased. As I mentioned earlier, we do victim impact statements. It puts the association in an awkward position, because generally you're writing a statement that involves one of your members. That being said, we need the deterrence, and this is something new that we're putting forward.

Fisheries committee  I think there are definitely some good systems out there, but they need updating, or they need to move into the digital age. For example, there are electronic logs for some of the reporting and tracking. As I mentioned, we have fisheries where dockside monitors are supposed to be at a much higher percentage.

Fisheries committee  I can speak only for Prince Edward Island, but I know that one of the companies over there has had real challenges for a number of years hiring enough people to cover its commitments.

Fisheries committee  The way I understand it now, a big challenge is that it's hard to get enough people to meet the commitments that DFO would like to see on the boats.

Fisheries committee  I think that would definitely help, for sure, whatever the system is, but that's a challenge. I mean, COVID was a unique circumstance, but there were fisheries that didn't have any dockside monitoring during that period.

Fisheries committee  I think the biggest thing, Mr. Cormier, is to involve harvesters and harvester groups in the discussion on how maybe there's a better way to do it. As we know, there are different programs, spot audits and such things that are also a deterrent, so things like that could possibly be looked at.

Fisheries committee  I'm not personally aware of it, but I am aware of situations in which sometimes lobster is being advertised on social media or something that is quite public.

Fisheries committee  That's a tough question. I would say no. I think it's something we want to get a handle on across the board in Canada, as was alluded to earlier. It has done a lot of damage to a lot of companies and a lot of communities, so it's something we really need to get under control, and we need to have a sense of urgency for it.

Fisheries committee  The position our association and other associations have taken for over three or four years has been that we need to all be fishing at the same time, under the same rules and regulations, and that we're all contributing to science and science-based decisions.

Fisheries committee  Absolutely.

Fisheries committee  First of all, I want to declare that the Prince Edward Island Fishermen's Association is a tag distributor. I think we were third or fourth when organizations or companies were picked. It's something we take very seriously. We certainly don't issue all the tags that are used on Prince Edward Island, as no one organization issues in other provinces.