Read this story and listen to audio clip from CBC.ca on former Conservative Fisheries Minister Tom Siddon’s outspoken opposition to Stephen Harper’s proposed gutting of the habitat protections of the Fisheries Act in his omnibus Budget Bill. (May 1, 2012)

The former Tory minister responsible for the current Fisheries Act is openly criticizing his successor over proposed changes to the legislation.

Tom Siddon, who was minister of Fisheries and Oceans from 1985 until 1990 for Brian Mulroney’s Progressive Conservatives, says he is extremely concerned by the amendments being championed by Keith Ashfield, the current minister.

“The minister of fisheries is the one remaining and most powerful person in Canada to protect this marvelous, historically important resource we have in Canada – our fishery. That’s his job,” he said Tuesday during an interview for CBC Radio’s The Current.

Omnibus Bill C-38, which is before Parliament this week, covers an array of legislation, including changes to the Environmental Assessment Act, the National Pipeline Act and the Canada Oil and Gas Exploration Act. Although the changes to the Fisheries Act are not the only flashpoints, they have hit a nerve with critics.

Read story and listen to audio clip: http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/05/01/tom-siddon-fisheries-act-criticism.html