PAUL MARTIN

PAUL MARTIN

The Global Ocean Commissioners face a daunting task .... tackling ocean pollution and fishing pirates

The Rt Hon Paul Martin was Prime Minister of Canada from 2003 to 2006 and Minister of Finance from 1993 to 2002. He was named the inaugural chair of the Finance Ministers’ G20 in 1999.

Mr Martin chairs the $200m British-Norwegian poverty alleviation and sustainable development fund for the 10-nation Congo Basin Rainforest. He sits on the Advisory Council of the Coalition for Dialogue on Africa, sponsored by the African Union, the UN Economic Commission for Africa and the African Development Bank. In Canada, he is responsible for the Martin Aboriginal Education Initiative, and he founded, with his son David, the Capital for Aboriginal Prosperity and Entrepreneurship Fund.

Before entering politics, Mr Martin had a distinguished career in the private sector as a business executive at Power Corporation of Canada and as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The CSL Group Inc. Mr Martin studied philosophy and history at St Michael’s College at the University of Toronto, and is a graduate of the University of Toronto Law School. He was called to the Ontario Bar in 1966.

The right honorable Paul (Edgar Philippe) Martin PC CC was born on August the 28th 1938. He is more popularly known as Paul Martin Jr., a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Liberal Party of Canada after being the Canadian Minister of Finance.

On November 14, 2003, Martin succeeded Jean Chrétien as leader of the Liberal Party and became prime minister on December 12, 2003. After the 2004 election, his Liberal Party retained power, though it was reduced to a minority government. Forced by a confidence vote, the 2006 general election produced a minority government for the opposition Conservative Party, making Stephen Harper prime minister. Martin stepped down as parliamentary leader after the election, handing the reins to Bill Graham for the interim. Martin stayed on as party leader until he resigned on March 18, being eventually succeeded by Stephane Dion.

Martin served as the Member of Parliament for the riding of LaSalle—Émard in Montreal from his election in the 1988 election to his retirement in 2008. He served as Minister of Finance from 1993 to 2002. He oversaw many changes in the financial structure of the Canadian government, and his policies had a direct effect on eliminating the country's chronic fiscal deficit by reforming various programs including social services.

Now seen as a global diplomat, Martin continues to contribute on the international arena through a variety of initiatives such as Incentives for Global Health, the not-for-profit behind the Health Impact Fund, where he serves as a member of the Advisory Board.

CONTACT PAUL MARTIN

OFFICE OF THE RIGHT HONOURABLE PAUL MARTIN, P.C

759 Victoria Square, suite 300
Montreal, Quebec, H2Y 2J7
T: (514) 982-3912

E: paulmartin@paulmartin.ca

OFFICE CONTACT

Thérèse Horvath
Scheduling Assistant
T: (514) 982-3912

E: thorvath@mai-iam.ca

Chloe Ferguson
Research Assistant
T: (514) 982-3929
cferguson@maei-ieam.ca

MEDIA CONTACT

Lucie Santoro
Director of Administration
Executive Assistant and Media
T: (514) 982-3911
C: (514) 758-9978

E: lsantoro@mai-iam.ca

Amanda Katz
Administrative Assistant
to Lucie Santoro
T: (514) 982-3917

E: akatz@mai-iam.ca

THE COMMISSIONERS


Carol Browner	Victor Chu	Obiageli Ezekwesili	Luiz Furlan	Vladimir Golitsyn	Robert Hill	Yoriko Kawaguchi
.	.	.	.	.	.	.

Pascal Lamy	Paul Martin	Sri Mulyani Indrawati	Cristina Narbona	Ratan Tata	Foua Toloa	Andrés Velasco

GOC OBJECTIVES

The objective of the Global Ocean Commission is to address the issues herein by formulating ‘politically and technically feasible short, medium, and long-term recommendations. The work of the Commission thus focuses on four key tasks:

1. To examine key threats, challenges, and changes to the ocean in the 21st century, and identify priority issues. The Commission will utilise both scientific and economic evidence, drawing on existing reports from world experts, as well as commencing original research in partnership with other organisations.

2. To review the effectiveness of the existing legal framework for the high seas in meeting these challenges. According to the Commission, this means a special focus on the effectiveness of regional fisheries management organisations, particularly with respect to their accountability, transparency, and performance. It also means reviewing the governance gap on biodiversity conservation and analysing options for combatting IUU fishing. The Commission will also assess the suitability of the existing legal regime for regulating emerging uses of the global ocean.

3. To engage with interested parties around the world, as well as the general public. The Commission will connect with fishers, military and merchant navies, recreational sailors, seafood companies, conservation groups and the emergent seabed mining business. The Commission also aims to raise understanding among policymakers, economists and other groups, including the general public, of the implications should high seas issues not be reformed.

4. To make recommendations regarding ‘cost-effective, pragmatic and politically feasible reforms of high seas governance, management and enforcement.’ While the threat analysis will take account of external issues such as climate change, recommendations will focus on reforms that can be achieved by evolving high seas governance. Some may concern the fundamental legal framework under which the global ocean is governed, whereas others may focus on improving the effectiveness of existing mechanisms.

The Global Ocean Commission
Somerville College
Woodstock Road
Oxford, OX2 6HD
Tel: UK+44 (0) 1865 280747

GLOBAL OCEAN COMMISSIONERS - A map of the world showing the location of the GOC's commissioners.

GLOBAL OCEAN COMMISSIONERS - CO-CHAIRS


José María Figueres	Trevor Manuel	David Miliband

GOC's SECRETARIAT


Simon Reddy	Rémi Parmentier	Clare Brennan	Kristian Teleki	Inés de Águeda	Sarah Gardner

RICH COUNTRIES PAY ZOMBIES $5 BILLION A YEAR IN SUBSIDIES TO PLUNDER THE OCEANS - If industrial fleets weren’t subsidized, they’d go out of business. Small-scale fisheries that don’t need enormous amounts of fuel to catch huge hauls of fish - i.e. the ones using sustainable fishing practices - would then in theory thrive. Many of these fishermen are in poor countries whose governments can’t afford to compete in the industrial looting.

Worse, there’s a double-whammy zombie effect going on in the fishing context. Government subsidies to highly destructive industrial fleets don’t just deprive small-scale fishermen of finite taxpayer dollars and edge them out of the market with cheap prices; they also rob them of current and long-term fishing stocks.

The Global Ocean Commission at its meeting in Oxford, 21st-23rd November 2013 (left to right) Robert Hill, Paul Martin, Foua Toloa, Yoriko Kawaguchi, Simon Reddy (Executive Secretary), Victor Chu, Andrés Velasco, Obiageli Ezekwesili, Trevor Manuel (Co-chair), Cristina Narbona, David Miliband (Co-chair), John Podesta, Pascal Lamy, José María Figueres (Co-chair), Vladimir Golitsyn, Ratan Tata.

Members of the Global Ocean Commission at their inaugural meeting in Cape
Town, South Africa. Left to right: Robert Hill, Trevor Manuel (Co-chair), Cristina Narbona, David Miliband (Co-chair), Obiageli Ezekwesili, Foua Toloa, José María Figueres (Co-chair), Sir Ratan Tata.