Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to speak to the debate this afternoon, although I am somewhat reluctant to get involved in it. From what I heard in the House today it has unfortunately turned into a partisan debate. Members on all sides seem to be saying that those on the other side do not understand the debate or do not care, that somehow it is just a western problem, or that the government is only looking at the problems of farmers in central Canada.
I come from an agricultural area, one of the richest and most diverse agricultural areas in Canada. It is in southwestern Ontario and I represent about 90% of tobacco farmers in the country. A number of my farm families and communities have been hurt because of the downturn in a certain commodity so I know somewhat from where I speak.
I say that also knowing there is a major problem in terms of this issue. Farm families across the west, also somewhat in central Canada and the east, are really feeling the pinch of some of the international problems in agriculture. I am not sure that I buy the argument totally that it is somehow all the government's fault or somehow the government is not standing up internationally at the trade table to protect Canadian farmers.
I recognize that some of the actions of countries around the world, in particular the Europe and United States to the south, with the use of exports subsidies have had a major impact on the prices of commodities. As a result they have had a major impact on what farm families are receiving for their products. That is only one of the problems.
There is also a problem of overproduction. It has always seemed funny to me that there can be overproduction in a world where people are starving, but it is said that there is overproduction of the products that people are willing to buy. There has been a problem over the last couple of years. It may seem funny to say this is a problem, but there has not been a major drought throughout the world and as a result there is overproduction. There is too much product on the market which has had an influence on the price.
We all know the impact the Asian financial crisis has had on different commodities. It certainly has also had a major impact on the price. The bottom line is that farmers across the country are not getting the amount of income from their products that they received in the past.
The government has responded in a number of ways. As was said earlier we have responded by sitting down with the provinces and the farm organizations and working out a package of aid for farmers. That was a year ago and I think there is some debate as to why more money has not actually gotten into the hands of farmers. That is a legitimate debate. Certainly people on all sides should sit down to figure out why it is that those farmers who have needed that money have not gotten the full amount of money they need.
It is not only a problem of getting the funds to the family farms at this time. There is an overall problem that the government, I agree, needs to resolve. We need to do it by sitting down with the affected parties and the provinces. It is not just a federal government problem. The federal government sat down with the provinces concerned and worked out AIDA. I would argue that maybe some of the provinces should have put in more money. That is a legitimate argument. I do not think it is totally the federal government's responsibility to do that. That is something which is being worked on. It is hoped that when the premiers come from western Canada in the next week to sit down and talk to the government, they will come up with more money and try to figure out a better way to get it into the hands of farmers immediately.
On the trade side, over the last couple of years we have sat down with the provinces, with the industry, with groups in western Canada and all throughout Canada to work out a trade position. We hope it will help address some of these concerns of export subsidies, particularly with the Europeans and the Americans.
We have a strong position which we will be taking to Seattle. We will sit down with other countries from around the world and try to get them to stop subsidizing their products so that Canadians can get better prices for their products. That is the right approach. We have pulled the agricultural commodity groups and the provinces together to put forward a strong and united front. I think that will work.
However, that will not solve a problem in the short term. Within the next few weeks the provinces and the federal government need to figure out how to get more money into the hands of farmers immediately.
What was said earlier mostly by my colleagues in the New Democratic Party, is that we should not have these trade organizations, that we should not have the WTO. I would argue frankly that this is a good example of why we need it.
Canada is a relatively small country in terms of our international trade. We face groups like the Japanese, the Europeans and the Americans who have large economies. It is difficult for us in these circumstances to sit down on a one to one basis and try to get them to stop their subsidies.
We can do that at international meetings, for example at the WTO around the table when we have like-minded countries that will stand up with Canada and tell the other countries that what they are doing is hurting our economies. We have had success in the past. We hope that over the next two or three years at the next round of negotiations we will get these countries to stop their direct subsidies which are hurting not only our grains and oilseeds farmers but farmers in other commodities as well.
I say sincerely to all Canadians who are listening that this is a problem for farm families. This is not a cyclical problem although as members have said, it always seems to come and go. It is more than that. All Canadians, particularly those who shop every day at the supermarket, need to know that Canadian farmers are not getting their fair share of the food dollar. Canadian farmers over the past number of years as a result of some international practices and other issues have been getting less and less for what they actually produce.
It is incumbent upon consumers in this country to get involved in this debate. If they want a Canadian agricultural system, if they want food that is safe and which is grown in Canada, they will have to get involved and know what the issues are. They should also be part of the solution.