Agriculture Committee on March 10th, 2010

[Bev Shipley, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

I'll leave that for the steering committee to sift through. I'm saying that we have three meetings. You can make those three meetings longer to get through the report, because in the midst of that we have to do the supplementaries for the budget.

Isn't that it?

[The Clerk]

Yes.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

We can do it in one day and have a maximum of three meetings--

[Bev Shipley, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

So we do the maximum of three meetings, which gives you March 15, 17, and 24. We come back for two meetings, then, on the motions. I guess if we get to March 24 and the whole committee says we need more time, then either we extend it at the end of the meeting we're in or we come back at the end, whatever the steering committee decides, after March 31. If we're going to start to put times on it, then I think we also should put on times in terms of dealing with the motions.

I'm just trying to move things ahead. I feel that we have an incredible obligation to the agriculture industry and the people who came in here. If I were sitting out there listening, I'm not so sure I'd be convinced that we're going to take them seriously about the commitment, time, information, and resources they've put forward in terms of giving us information for that report. I think we should deal with it.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

Mr. Hoback.

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

Mr. Chair, I'm going to make a suggestion here, because I'm looking at all these things coming forward here and at the timeliness. Wayne has pointed out some very important things. There's some stuff going on that I think needs to be addressed in a timely manner.

I would strongly suggest that we say next week that this report is done. So if that means we sit here Wednesday and Tuesday and then come back Thursday night and stay here till three o'clock in the morning, that's what we do: we hammer it out and we get it done. Then the steering committee can take on its responsibilities and schedule the following meetings accordingly, keeping in mind that we will have estimates coming in, which will take a meeting.

I look at this and say that if we're going to go three meetings or six meetings, we're just going to delay, delay, and delay. I think we need to actually lock the door here and just get it done. I would strongly suggest that we do this next week. Let's get it out of the way and then get into the motions. Then the steering committee can decide which motions and which items we're going to address at that point.

But I think we need to get this report done first and get it out of our hair. If that means we have to be here until two o'clock in the morning on Friday, so be it.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

That's even tighter than Mr. Shipley's motion.

Is there any commitment to Randy's suggestion about finishing this next week?

Mr. Easter.

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Look, I hear what you're saying, but.... Bev has said that if you're a producer, someone out there who has made a presentation on competitiveness, and you're listening, you'd say, “God, won't they get this done?”

But I'll tell you that if you're a hog producer out there right now or like some of these managers of these plants with SRM who just don't know what they're doing.... For some of the guys who called me on hogs, if I call them up and say, “Well, guys, we'll get around in two or three weeks to the hog issue because we're going to deal with the competitiveness report”, I'll tell you what they're going to tell me. They're going to tell me, “Competitiveness is going to be no good for me because I'm not going to be in business”.

I've outlined the numbers. There are a hell of a lot of people not in business now.

On Bev's proposal, I would agree with it, turned on its head. Let's try to get them all done by the break week, but let's deal with the hog issue first because that's the one we need to have answers on right now. I have no problem with going that way.

The steering committee has heard the discussion. I'm not going to support the motion, but the steering committee has heard the discussion and can make a decision accordingly.

I agree with you, Larry. I think that our first meeting on March 15 should be a full meeting on something, wherever the steering committee goes, so the steering committee should meet today, tomorrow, or Friday.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

Alex, you're next on the list. Do you need to speak to the motion any more?

[Alex Atamanenko, NDP, British Columbia Southern Interior, BC]

I guess I'm a little bit confused, but that's nothing new.

We have a motion that says three meetings, and then, Randy, you're suggesting to hammer it out over two meetings. Then we have the....

So I'm not really sure. The motion says three meetings starting next Monday. Is that correct, Bev?

[Bev Shipley, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Yes.

[Alex Atamanenko, NDP, British Columbia Southern Interior, BC]

Maybe we should just put a maximum time for the report and then let the steering committee decide where exactly they want to plug it in. Maybe it should come in the week after next, so we can address at least one issue. There would be a week on the report and then we get on with.... That, to me, seems like a bit of a compromise. We limit the time. We've waited all this time. Another week probably won't hurt. If in fact it appears that we should be discussing the pork industry, let's just do it next week and move on and do the report the week after.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

I did hear a suggestion from Mr. Easter, or I think it was a commitment, to at least deal with a couple of the items that have been proposed, including the hog industry and including the report, by the Easter break. Of course, we have to remember that we have the supplementary estimates to deal with in there for at least part of one meeting, if not a whole meeting.

[Bev Shipley, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Chair, I'll agree with that, but I want a commitment that we're actually going to put time in and finish the report by the Easter break.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

I'll keep you here till three in the morning, if that's the way we have to do it.

Can we get a consensus around the table to that kind of a commitment? We'll work out the timing of all of them, but at least we'd have deadlines to deal with some of these. That way we have the flexibility to deal with something like the hog industry early. Do we have that commitment around the table?

André.

[André Bellavance, Bloc, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

You may decide by majority to proceed with the discussion of the report, but I believe that there are many other priorities we should consider first. As I was saying, I believe that we will be able to find some time on the agenda to complete this report by the end of June. However, I stress that there is not only one priority that must be considered before the report; there are many.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

I think that's understood, André.

We have to vote on Mr. Shipley's motion. There have been so many suggestions thrown out there.

The consensus out there seems to be on the commitment we just discussed, Mr. Shipley. It would probably be best to have you withdraw that. It looks like your motion, in the manner it is in, is going to be defeated. However, it's still up to you.

[Bev Shipley, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

My concern, Mr. Chair, is that I started out with a timeline that I think is responsible for committee members. Then I gave and I said, okay, I'll change. Now when I give, it's gone to June.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

No.

[Bev Shipley, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Well, I mean, that's a concern I have. As soon as we give something, all of a sudden we're going to lose, and this report now isn't important enough to do.

Mr. Chair, I'm not going to withdraw the motion. I'm going to put the motion forward because I think we need to be held accountable, to do what we have been commissioned to do.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

Would you amend your motion to have the report done by Easter?

[Bev Shipley, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Yes, and I said I would.

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

But not Wayne Easter.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[Bev Shipley, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Let me clarify that, then.