Mr. Speaker, some quibble, 22 cents versus $5.92. He is still on numbers that do not add up.
The minister indicated recently that to put us on parity with U.S. support payments would require some $18 billion to $20 billion. Farm groups are saying that they do not need that much of a commitment. In fact, $4 billion has been suggested by at least one major organization.
Would the minister tell the House how he arrived at this large figure because it is much higher than what he had said in the past? I hope by inflating this number it is not an excuse to ignore the plight of Canadian farmers in a desperate situation.