moved for leave to introduce Bill C-273, an act to amend the Feeds Act, the Fertilizers Act, the Seeds Act, the Pest Control Products Act, and the Food and Drugs Act.
Mr. Speaker, the people of Alberta did not send me here to sit quietly while farms are run out of business by bureaucrats in Ottawa. Farmers sent me here to fix what is broken. Today, I am introducing the FARM act, a simple and practical way to make life better for Canadian farmers and more affordable for every family that depends on them.
For years, our farmers have been buried under layers of red tape, rules that do not make sense, delays that cost them money and barriers that keep them from using the same safe, proven tools their competitors already rely on in the United States, the EU, the U.K., Australia and New Zealand. Meanwhile, our farmers are told to wait: to wait for approvals, to wait for reviews and to wait while their costs climb and their yields fall. That is not protecting Canadians. That is holding them back. When farmers fall behind, Canadians feel it at the grocery store.
The FARM act would change that. It would create a trusted system where products are already approved by at least two of our closest allies and can be made available to Canadian farmers within 90 days. That is not years but days. Canadian reviews still happen, safety remains paramount and the minister will retain the authority to step in if there are concerns. This bill gives ranchers in Strathmore the medications they need to keep their herds healthy. It gives potato farmers in P.E.I. the inputs they need to produce more food. There is no new bureaucracy and no new spending, just common sense. It was written by a farmer for my colleagues in the field. It means stronger yields, lower costs, more food produced right here at home and stronger rural communities. It means some relief for Canadians who are tired of watching their grocery bills climb higher.
Canadian farmers are the best in the world. They need the government to get out of the way so they can grow food for families.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)