Decades after caving in to international pressure to cancel the East Coast seal hunt, a new Senate report is recommending the federal government implement a harvest management plan and counter what it says is ‘misinformation’ regarding the industry.The report includes revoking tax exempt status for activist groups.The Senate Committee on Fisheries and Oceans issued an 80-page report on Thursday that calls for — among other things — managing commercial seal populations and countering “the breadth of misinformation and disinformation that surrounds Canada’s seal harvest.”That includes amending the Income Tax Act so Canadian charities that promote “misinformation and disinformation” about the seal harvest have their tax-exempt charity status revoked..As well, it calls for a campaign to promote seal products and the removal of trade barriers that affect them — particularly in the European Union where more than 30 countries have implemented import bans on commercial seal products.The report found that one adult seal can eat 1,000 kilograms or more of fish and seafood each year and that “seals eat 22 times as much fish as is commercially harvested.”According to the report the number of grey seals has increased by 30 times since the 1960s to 366,400. The harp-seal population is estimated at 7.4 million animals. Last year only 1% of the total allowable catch was landed for the grey-seal harvest and only 7% was landed for the harp-seal harvest between 2018-2022..“The federal government, working with industry stakeholders like ourselves and indigenous rights holders, must take immediate action on these recommendations to preserve the health of Canada’s oceans and our remote and rural coastal communities,” Doug Chiasson, the executive director of the Seals and Sealing Network, said in a release.Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is responsible for licensing seal harvesters who are obligated to be trained in what it refers to as a ‘humane’ three-step killing process striking the animal on its head with a hakapik, club or firearm, checking to ensure it is dead or unconscious, and then cutting an artery and bleeding the animal out before skinning it. Since 1987, it’s been outlawed to harvest seals with white fur.The irony is the UCP government under former premier Jason Kenney launched a public inquiry to target environmental groups that campaign against the oil sector..This is what the Western Standard is up againstThe Trudeau government is funding lies and propaganda by directly subsidizing the mainstream media. They do this to entrench the powerful Eastern, woke and corrupt interests that dominate the political, social and economic institutions in Canada. Federal authorities are constantly trying to censor us and stop us from publishing the stories that they don’t want you to read. Ottawa may weaponize our taxes and police against us, but we’ve got a powerful ally on our side.You. Free men, and free women. We need you to stand with us and become a member of the Western Standard. Here’s what you will get for your membership:Unlimited access to all articles from the Western Standard, Alberta Report, West Coast Standard, and Saskatchewan Standard, with no paywall. Our daily newsletter delivered to your inbox. .Access to exclusive Member-only WS events.Keep the West’s leading independent media voice strong and free.If you can, please support us with a monthly or annual membership. It takes just a moment to set up, and you will be making a big impact on keeping one the last independent media outlets in Canada free from Ottawa’s corrupting influence.
Decades after caving in to international pressure to cancel the East Coast seal hunt, a new Senate report is recommending the federal government implement a harvest management plan and counter what it says is ‘misinformation’ regarding the industry.The report includes revoking tax exempt status for activist groups.The Senate Committee on Fisheries and Oceans issued an 80-page report on Thursday that calls for — among other things — managing commercial seal populations and countering “the breadth of misinformation and disinformation that surrounds Canada’s seal harvest.”That includes amending the Income Tax Act so Canadian charities that promote “misinformation and disinformation” about the seal harvest have their tax-exempt charity status revoked..As well, it calls for a campaign to promote seal products and the removal of trade barriers that affect them — particularly in the European Union where more than 30 countries have implemented import bans on commercial seal products.The report found that one adult seal can eat 1,000 kilograms or more of fish and seafood each year and that “seals eat 22 times as much fish as is commercially harvested.”According to the report the number of grey seals has increased by 30 times since the 1960s to 366,400. The harp-seal population is estimated at 7.4 million animals. Last year only 1% of the total allowable catch was landed for the grey-seal harvest and only 7% was landed for the harp-seal harvest between 2018-2022..“The federal government, working with industry stakeholders like ourselves and indigenous rights holders, must take immediate action on these recommendations to preserve the health of Canada’s oceans and our remote and rural coastal communities,” Doug Chiasson, the executive director of the Seals and Sealing Network, said in a release.Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is responsible for licensing seal harvesters who are obligated to be trained in what it refers to as a ‘humane’ three-step killing process striking the animal on its head with a hakapik, club or firearm, checking to ensure it is dead or unconscious, and then cutting an artery and bleeding the animal out before skinning it. Since 1987, it’s been outlawed to harvest seals with white fur.The irony is the UCP government under former premier Jason Kenney launched a public inquiry to target environmental groups that campaign against the oil sector..This is what the Western Standard is up againstThe Trudeau government is funding lies and propaganda by directly subsidizing the mainstream media. They do this to entrench the powerful Eastern, woke and corrupt interests that dominate the political, social and economic institutions in Canada. Federal authorities are constantly trying to censor us and stop us from publishing the stories that they don’t want you to read. Ottawa may weaponize our taxes and police against us, but we’ve got a powerful ally on our side.You. Free men, and free women. We need you to stand with us and become a member of the Western Standard. Here’s what you will get for your membership:Unlimited access to all articles from the Western Standard, Alberta Report, West Coast Standard, and Saskatchewan Standard, with no paywall. Our daily newsletter delivered to your inbox. .Access to exclusive Member-only WS events.Keep the West’s leading independent media voice strong and free.If you can, please support us with a monthly or annual membership. It takes just a moment to set up, and you will be making a big impact on keeping one the last independent media outlets in Canada free from Ottawa’s corrupting influence.