Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I am going to ask you my questions. I note that you are all assistant deputy ministers, acting or otherwise. What is the vision for agriculture at present? My preamble will be quite simple. At National Defence, they make plans 10 years in advance. I have been in Ottawa for four and a half years, and there has never been any clear vision for agriculture. How can this be?
If I listen to the Minister, there are so many programs that they are coming out our ears, but not one is designed for farmers. What is your vision of agriculture, as there is for the environment or any other aspect of society? What is your vision? We have had problems like avian flu, BSE, droughts, floods and the golden nematode. These are obstacles.
How can it be that we are not able to do as the Americans do and give our farmers the same kind of subsidies that the Americans or the European Union give to their farmers? How can it be that we in Canada are not able to do the same? For four and a half years, I have been hearing the same song, sung by everyone I meet. Now I want an answer, if you are able to give me one, naturally.