NANAIMO – NDP critic for fisheries and oceans Lisa Marie Barron and deputy critic Gord Johns say that the newly-announced plan for prawn and shrimp fisheries from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) is a victory for B.C. prawn harvesters. This decision comes after months of uncertainty and proposed regulation changes by the Liberal government, which would have threatened the livelihoods of independent harvesters.
“Prawn harvesters have finally had their voices heard, and a common-sense solution was found,” said Johns. “Key stakeholders have been working together for months to raise these concerns; they shared petitions and appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans. But the Liberals should not have put harvesters through this stress and uncertainty in the first place. It's good to see that the right solution was found in the end.”