No, but we do hear that; it's a very common complaint about programs. AgriStability in particular is I'm sure what they're referring to. It's complex, it's not transparent, and it's not as timely as it should be.
A few years ago, perhaps three or four, we tried to streamline the process by offering what we call interim payments or targeted advance payments, which would give a producer 50% of his predicted end payment earlier in the process. We put a calculator up on the web so that a producer could try to work through what the payment would be and make it a little bit more predictable and bankable.
I should explain, though, that it's almost the nature of the program that makes it complex. When we consulted with farmers about the design of this program, AgriStability, there was a debate, quite a healthy one, on margin-based programs specific to a given farm and a mix of farm inputs and outputs, as opposed to a model, which you see frequently at the provincial level, formed on an industry average that you compare your farm with. If you didn't do so well, you get some money. If you did better than the average, you don't get any support.
Producers told us then and have told us since, and very recently, that precision was really where they wanted to be. Their operation is unique and can't be easily compared with something else.
So we have to continue to have a dialogue. We have a committee of producers from across the country that the minister has assembled. We consult with them all the time about program parameter changes and fundamental redesign options.
We haven't reached a consensus on what would be better than AgriStability. I should remind you that one of the things this government did to get money into farmers' hands quicker and more predictably was to establish AgriInvest. That's a program we kick-started with $600 million right into farmers' accounts. Every year, there's a statement provided to farmers that says your performance on your farm allows you to invest x dollars matchable by the Government of Canada and the provinces.