Mr. Speaker, most members have have had an opportunity to speak to the motions in group No. 3.
I would like to refer to the motions presented by the opposition members and to put on record the government's response to them and why we are not voting in support of them.
Motions Nos. 20, 21, and 22, as proposed by the member for Kamloops and I believe supported by the NDP, propose that the WGTA would remain in force. The government is committed to changing the WGTA because it feels that after years of discussions on the prairies, the time has come to transform the grain handling system in western Canada. Liberals are very confident that the way the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, the Minister of Transport and the Minister of Finance have developed this legislation is correct, that the proper consultations have taken place and now the country is ready to proceed.
Motions Nos. 75 and 76 are proposed by the member for Lethbridge. Motion No. 75 would reverse the government amendment adopted by the Standing Committee on Finance on May 18 of this year. The purpose of the government's amendment is to ensure that an equitable arrangement with respect to the transition payment is made by a landowner and his tenant. Many farm groups have specifically requested that the government make the amendment to the WGTA in the legislation known as Bill C-76.
Motion No. 76, also proposed by the member for Lethbridge, would reverse the government's amendment adopted by the Standing Committee on Finance on May 18 of this year. The purpose of the government amendment is to ensure that an equitable arrangement with respect to the transition payment is made by a landowner and his tenant as requested by many farm groups. The government's amendment to subsection 4(4)(c) is to provide for the tax treatment to be given to that portion of a transition payment made by an owner to his tenant.
The government in amending the WGTA to provide that an equitable arrangement is reached between an owner and his tenant is being responsive to the concerns expressed by many producers.
Motion No. 77, also proposed by the member for Lethbridge on behalf of his party, proposes that subsection 6(c) be deleted. That section allows the minister of agriculture to make regulations prescribing conditions that must be met by an applicant in order for him to receive a transition payment, including the condition that an equitable arrangement be reached between the applicant and tenant. This would reverse the government amendment adopted by the Standing Committee on Finance on May 18. The purpose of the amendment is to ensure an equitable arrangement with respect to the transition payment is made by a landowner and his tenant as requested by many farm groups.
Finally, in this group of motions, the finance critic for the official opposition has not proposed that clause 26 of Bill C-76 be deleted. The effect of this motion would be to repeal the Western Grain Transportation Act but no compensation would be payable to owners of the prairie farmland.
This motion would preclude the government from making any payments to owners of land in recognition of loss in land value that may result from the termination of transportation subsidies. A cornerstone of this legislation is to provide compensation.