Mr. Speaker, the hon. member's question on September 30 was: “Can the minister assure us that Quebec sheep farmers are receiving the same treatment from the agency in all aspects as their counterparts in other provinces, and is he prepared to produce agency documents to prove this?”
I am happy to report that the information requested was provided to the hon. member for Louis-Hébert in writing.
As the hon. member has stated, we have ordered a number of sheep quarantined and slaughtered, primarily in Quebec. These actions have been taken to control and prevent the spread of scrapie and to protect Canadian consumers and the sheep industry. Our actions have been based on Health Canada's recommendation that animals that have been infected or exposed to scrapie must be kept out of the food chain.
As a result of the difficult but necessary actions to date, there has been significant progress made in containing the further spread of scrapie in the sheep population in Quebec.
We sympathize with the situation of these farmers who have worked hard to develop their industry. We have taken a number of steps to assist them.
Since the beginning of 1997 the Government of Canada has paid out more than $2 billion in compensation to sheep farmers in Quebec. In February we amended our legislation to include compensation for disposal costs. Recently we doubled the maximum level for compensation available for sheep destroyed to $600.
In addition, the Farm Credit Corporation developed a deferred loan program to assist affected farmers in re-establishing their flocks. We have also committed close to $400,000 to research into validating a test for scrapie in live animals. In taking all these steps we have made every effort to consult with and to work with representatives of the sheep industry.
I can assure the House this government has treated Quebec sheep farmers fairly and equitably.