Thank you very much, and thanks to you, Minister, and your officials for being here today. I will try to be brief in my questions and hopefully give you a chance to respond, perhaps in the order that I ask them.
First I'd like to follow up on what Wayne mentioned in regard to the press release about the Grain Commission. It's a disturbing press release, and I'd like some comment from you on this. According to the press release, the Grain Commission producer protection programs will be slashed by 67%, while grain quality programs will be reduced by almost half and research programs will be cut by 60%.
There are three former commissioners who have statements in this release.
One says that “As Ottawa's contribution goes down, producer costs will rise.” I find that extremely disturbing and I'd like some comments on that.
The other one is that, “These cuts will undermine grain producers in their dealings with grain companies, which have never been more powerful. Canada's reputation for top quality grain will be hurt too. You can't protect producers and make these cuts at the same time.” This is former commissioner Bob Douglas.
The last quotation I have here is by Ms. Donna Welke: “At a time when food safety is a top priority for Canadians, Bill C-39 is undermining the safety of Canadian grain products.”
I'd like a comment on those statements, please.
Minister, you mentioned COOL and how we oppose this. I'm just wondering how realistic it is to go to a panel. Do we have some very specific concrete measures as to how to oppose COOL, and does this fit in with shifting our focus to not always trying to conform to trade obligations, but maybe to shift to really put Canada first and make sure we stand up and put in the right measures to protect our producers?
That also goes in line with the tree fruit industry, as you mentioned. You're saying the market will just regulate it. We're producing grapes; the logical result is that eventually we'll be a nation of grape producers and we won't have any more apples, for example. Is that a realistic goal for Canada, or should there be some government intervention to ensure that we have a safe supply of apples and peaches and all the other fruit we're noted for? That's the second one.
I will probably need you to get back to me on my last question. Can you provide the committee with a breakdown of federal grants and contributions by province for the following programs: Greencover, the environmental farm plan, the farm stewardship program, and the Canada-Ontario water supply expansion program for the fiscal years 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07, and 2007-08? I have it here if you need it.