Mr. Speaker, I will start with the last question because as usual the hon. member for Glengarry-Prescott-Russell has gone too far. He said that in spite of the loss of article XI, supply management sectors would survive, and so forth. I never said they would not. I said: stop deceiving Quebec
producers by saying that you won on all fronts. Producers are now adjusting, and I can assure you that these are very talented and ingenious people. They will adjust. They will get through this rough spot, but I don't think you will in the next election.
We say stop deceiving the producers who know everything there is to know about GATT articles. They know perfectly well that article XI has been replaced by a tariff that will be reduced gradually. It will not be easy to adjust, but they will. Nobody said supply management was dead in the dairy sector and the agricultural industry. You only hear what you want to hear.
I also think we should stop underestimating the intelligence of farm producers regarding another issue raised by the hon. member opposite. In referring to tariffs, we said that today, negotiations were taking place between the United States and Canada, and if the hon. member denies the existence of these negotiations, he is contradicting what was said by his minister of agriculture, his Minister for International Trade, his Minister of Finance and his own Prime Minister.
On December 15, a Canadian task force was appointed by the Prime Minister when the GATT agreement was signed. On the American side, an American task force was appointed by President Clinton to examine the implications of the GATT agreement and the corresponding section of the North American free trade agreement. How do we manage both?
The first thing the Americans said was that NAFTA took precedence over the GATT agreement as far as tariffs were concerned. In other words, the new tariff designed to protect the agriculture and dairy sectors should come under NAFTA, which provides that in ten years' time, tariffs will be phased out. If he does not have the facts, I think he should stop talking nonsense.
Incidentally, last week I was reading a report from the Prairie Pool and the Western Producer which said the Canadian government should stand firm on the durum wheat issue. These are not my words but those of western producers and editorial writers. If the hon. member thinks we only read about what happens in Quebec, he is wrong. We take our responsibilities as the Official Opposition very seriously, and to us it is clear Canada is not doing its job to protect western grain producers in the case of durum wheat exports to the United States. That is the subject of today's debate. I realize the truth may not be palatable, but above all, I wish the hon. member would stop talking nonsense. When one does not know the facts, one refrains from commenting.