Just as Mr. Easter is in the spirit of clarifying the record, I would like to clarify by bringing to the attention of the witnesses and the committee the Liberal media release from May 21. You'll remember that the Prime Minister made the announcement on May 21.
It reads, from Mr. Easter:
Three years after the Liberal Party first began pursuing changes to product of Canada labeling all the Conservatives had to offer was a photo op and a backgrounder, Liberal Agriculture Critic Wayne Easter reacted to Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s announcement. “As part of broad consultations with farmers in 2005, the Liberal government was hearing the first calls to fix product of Canada definitions so that consumers would know what they were getting.”
Further on, he says:
“We knew long ago that this measure could improve farm incomes and provide valuable information to consumers. What took the government so long?”
I would also refer you, Mr. Chair, to the blues from May 6, 2008. They show that Mr. Steckle also pushed for nearly all of the recommendations as well. That's just to clarify.