Mr. DeBoer, I related to you right away, if I may say so, because you are a dairy producer and a cranberry grower. I represent a region where we have a huge amount of dairy production. I do not know if you know the places where cranberries are grown, but I can tell you that there a lot of cranberry growers in Saint-Louis-de-Bedford, which is located in my constituency. This is actually where production in Quebec started some years ago.
You brought up a very important point on land transfers. You discussed changing the rules to allow other transfers, not just from parents to children. I agree with the change you are suggesting. I would like to tell you that the idea was proposed by the Bloc Québécois five years ago at a conference that brought together the next generation of Quebec agriculture. The topic was specifically on what to do to encourage the new generation and the focus was on what the federal government could do to encourage land transfers. Before the last election, committee members toured Canada again. I decided to advocate for those proposals that appeared in one of our reports.
The federal government is dealing with those proposals. Changes have been made, especially in the amount eligible for the capital gains deduction. The amount went from $500,000 to $750,000. Perhaps it could go to a million dollars. Things change slowly, but maybe, if we keep hammering away...
I would like to hear your views about the possibility that the transfer rule could equally well apply to other members of the family. What if there were nephews and nieces ready to take over, for example? Of course, quite strict criteria would have to be maintained, making sure that it was intended for people 40 years old or under. The farm, of course, would have to continue in operation. I would like to hear your views on that and to know whether you have any other solutions for us.