Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you all for your testimony.
Our Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-food often hears technical presentations. That is a normal and necessary thing. However, as a witness said earlier, it is equally very important to discuss the human and social aspects of agriculture. Therefore I thank you for today's testimonies.
There seems to be a common theme in your testimony on the many factors contributing to the increase in stress in the agricultural sector, and that constant theme is financial instability. There is also a fear of financial instability. As Mr. Barnabé stated, even those who are doing fairly well in their area often feel the sword of Damocles hanging over their heads.
It has to be said, there is a crisis in agriculture. It's an income crisis. Immediately following the 2006 elections, thousands of agricultural producers came to Parliament Hill. I was there, along with agricultural producers from my riding. Their concern was the income crisis. Therefore it does exist.
In 2005, net income for Canadian agricultural producers went down by a little more than 14%. In Quebec, that decrease was approximately 7%. The share of the budget allocated to agriculture by the federal government in 1991-92, which wasn't all that long ago, was 4%. In 2005-06 it was 2%. These are all true and verified figures.
The Bloc's demands come from people like you, who bring them to us. It's very important that you be heard. There is talk of reinvesting in agriculture and of implementing a real income security policy, among other things, on the financial side.
I have the feeling that we are at a crossroads. There's a political choice to be made. What kind of agriculture do we want? Do we still want family farming? Do we believe in it? And if that is what we want, then we need to take the necessary steps to ensure that this type of agriculture lasts. Do we prefer an industrial agriculture or do we prefer agriculture that provides commodities from elsewhere?
I'd like to hear you on this. Do you feel that, politically, this choice has been made, or do you feel that you are preaching in the wilderness?