The Fish Harvesters Benefit (FHB) program was created in October 2020 to help self-employed fishermen deal with lost revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic and now there are reports indicating the government is trying to get some of that money back.
Fisheries Critic and MP for South Shore- St. Margarets Rick Perkins says he’s heard from many fishermen who don’t understand why they’re being asked to repay the money. “The program advertised itself as being available to all self-employed fishermen and the people who work on those boats,” Perkins said.
He says the letters say that now that the most significant financial impacts of the pandemic have subsided the DFO expects repayment.
The Government of Canada webpage on the FHB says “The FHB is designed to help fish harvesters in Canada impacted by COVID-19, the Government of Canada created the Fish Harvester Benefit and Grant Program to provide financial support to self-employed harvesters who were not eligible for other financial relief programs.”
Perkins says around 5,000 fishermen have received letters indicating they need to repay their benefit. In many cases, he says the letters indicate repayment is being asked for because they are self-employed, despite the program advertising itself as being for self-employed fishers.
The issue has been brought up by Perkins in Parliament on multiple occasions but so far no progress has been made.
“People have gone through their appeals, I’ve raised it personally in a meeting with the Fisheries Minister, she doesn’t seem to understand the program and she certainly doesn’t understand the fact that for centuries fishermen have been paid a percentage of their catch and this program was designed for that,” Perkins said.
Fisheries Minister Joyce Murray did not respond to our request for comments on this story.
Perkins says he will continue to fight for a resolution to this issue.
