Agriculture Committee on Nov. 16th, 2010

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Well, I know André is trying to get both here, but I really don't think two hours would do it for both. Is there any way of extending a meeting or having another meeting, seeing as we lost today?

When you get into risk management programs, everything from AgriStability to AgriInvest to AgriRecovery, there are a lot of issues. I think we've got lots of questions for a full two-hour session for the department. Even for producers to explain their case, I think an hour is tightening it up. Is there any way the committee can extend it or not?

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

I think the intention of the steering committee was to have a separate meeting with the department. I think that's--

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Yes, but we lost that one today.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

We lost that one, so maybe we can start just moving them down a bit and we can have two meetings.

I don't know if that's the will of the committee.

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Can we hold that for now?

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

Maybe we'll hold the producers till later on. I think there's a sense that the department should be here on the 23rd.

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Mr. Chair, I don't know whether I agree. We would have more questions and the department could even be better prepared if we heard producers first on risk management and emergency relief. Things may come up at that meeting that we're not aware of. Then maybe the department, once it reads the witness testimony, could be prepared to answer if it comes after.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

Well, if you look at the 23rd and 25th, if you've got your sheet in front of you, one could be for the department and one could be for producers, or producer groups, or whatever. Right? Do you see the two of them there?

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

I know, but they're two completely different issues.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

I think we all wanted the department to come here next. So what is it, next Thursday, that we want the department, and the producers to come next Tuesday? Would that be your sense?

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

And then move the emergency relief back to another time? It's a completely different issue. The emergency advance relief is a huge problem on the payback timeframe.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

If I may, I don't want to get this too mixed up from where our original committee was, but because we lost the day today, that's where we're trying to fit in.... We've got to figure out the day we lost today with the department. Where are we putting it at the end of the day? Is it next Tuesday or next Thursday? I don't really want to change the rest of it.

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

I'd suggest this, Mr. Chair, that on the 23rd you go with the full range of risk management programs, on the 25th you have the department officials, and then you move everything down a notch from there.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

Does everybody understand that? It's not really changing the whole intent, because we lost today; it's just moving it all down.

Madam Clerk, do we have the understanding on the 23rd and 25th?

[The Clerk]

Yes. If I understand correctly, then, on the 23rd we would be proceeding with, as it states in number 3, the committee hearing from individual agricultural producers concerning the review of various agricultural programs.

Then on November 25, officials from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada would be invited to speak on the same issue of program review.

Everything else would be moved down.

So November 30 would then become the emergency relief programs with individuals.

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

I gather we've got to deal with motions today anyway, if we have time. So that would take number 9 further down.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

That's right. We're hoping to catch up today, so we wouldn't take up our time.

You're just changing the dates, right?

Okay, Madam Clerk, away we go.

[The Clerk]

On November 30 the committee would hear from individual agricultural producers concerning the effectiveness of current emergency relief programs.

On December 2 the committee would invite officials from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to appear concerning various issues, including the import of product and the recent internal audit report.

On December 7 the committee would hold a meeting on Canada-European Union trade arrangements and invite both negotiators and witnesses to appear.

On December 9 the committee would hold a meeting on the issue of the railway costing review.

On December 14 and December 16 the committee would commence its study of the biotechnology industry.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

The clerk needs witnesses from committee members...for which day? Is it just for the one day that you need suggestions for witnesses?

[The Clerk]

It would be November 23, for agriculture producers regarding their view of programs, and for November 30, regarding the emergency relief programs.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

It's for those two days that we'd have to bring witness names forward from committee members.

Are there any questions on any of the details of these days?

Yes, Mr. Storseth.

[Brian Storseth, Conservative, Westlock—St. Paul, AB]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I know you're trying to move this in a non-partisan way, and I appreciate that, but I'd like to make a point to Mr. Valeriote.

Once again, this is Wayne running this committee with a partisan smear. We're not going to tackle any issue, in any kind of timeline, where we actually dive into it and make good recommendations on changes. We're going to go meeting to meeting, to every different issue that Mr. Easter has come up with for the last year, and then put it in one meeting to do a drive-by smear. There will be no time for any real substantive response or recommendations on behalf of the committee.

It should be noted that that's the direction you're taking this committee for the rest of the year.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

I was hoping we wouldn't go down this path. There was no directive from Mr. Easter to our steering committee.

[Brian Storseth, Conservative, Westlock—St. Paul, AB]

You just had it. He figured out the agenda.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Mark Eyking]

Anyway, we have a speakers' list. Hopefully--