The federal government issued notice for the closure of the coastguard station in Gimli two weeks ago, and reversed its decision after considerable backlash and pressure.

"We were notified a couple of weeks ago that layoff notices were going to coastguard employees in Selkirk and Kenora," says James Bezan, MP for Selkirk-Interlake-Eastman. "And the future of search and rescue services by the coastguard at Gimli were also in peril."

He says several members of the opposition party went to work to get a briefing from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and met with its minister LeBlanc to convince the need for the stations to remain open. The provincial government of Manitoba and MLAs in Gimli, Selkirk, Lac du Bonnet and Interlake, as well as several Liberal MPs in Winnipeg who felt the backlash, convinced Ottawa to back off.

The Search and Rescue services in Gimli are now guaranteed to be maintained, and the construction of its new facilities will be completed.

Bezan says there's no question the federal government has responsibilities over Lake Winnipeg, and commercial fishers must be able to land their catches safely. All users of the water need that guarantee in case something goes awry, so they can receive help from the coastguard. Bezan says that's so important because Lake Winnipeg can be dangerous. Navigational hazards that exist in the South Basin, down the Red River, and in the Lake of the Woods also require coastguard services. He notes the service is a great organization with brave men and women go into harm's way to protect us. Bezan notes this makes the reversal a huge win.

All the jobs were saved, including six to eight jobs that were immediately on the line in Gimli. Some vague references were concerns for others, but they're now a non-issue.

Bezan says the core mandate of the Canadian Coastguard must be changed to include inland waterways. He explains an excuse the Trudeau government was using for the closure was their position that inland waters that aren't considered boundary waters are not part of the core mandate. Having coastguard in Lake Winnipeg and the Red River as well as Lake of the Woods is what they considered an anomaly in their minds, even though services have operated in these places for over four decades. It's a policy decision, Bezan notes. And the minister must change the policy so this is not repeated every time a government faces huge deficits and is looking for savings in the wrong places. He stresses it's ridiculous to think that public safety can be jeopardized for the sake of saving money.