Mr. Chairman, it is an honour and, in some sense, sad that I am here participating in this debate. I am sure other members would prefer not to be here and that things were going well in the farming communities across the country.
I speak particularly on behalf of the farmers of the Saskatoon--Wanuskewin constituency, but we know there is a major problem for Canadian farmers and agriculture producers from coast to coast who are suffering from drought conditions. They are facing some real burdens these days.
It has been fairly obvious over a number of years and even of late that the Liberal government does not have, as any kind of priority, the needs of farm families in rural Canada. It may say that it is not in its interest nor in the national interest, but it is very wrong on that. At a time like this, it is in the national interest to sustain and assist those who put food on our tables day by day. It is in the interest of each of us, three times a day at least.
The Liberal agriculture minister refuses to acknowledge that there is a crisis. We see him responding in the House in a rather lacklustre fashion refusing to acknowledge the depth of the ongoing farm crisis and the exacerbating impact of the drought across our country. At times, when he is pressed on it, he comes up with a briefing package that nicely itemizes or details all the help available to farmers, but it proves to be rather pitiful. It may look great on paper but there is not a lot of cash or dollars on the table when it comes right down to it.
Overall yields are down very significantly across the country, anywhere from 20% or better in the prairies. Surely in this session the time has come for farmers to get some help and receive deliverance. The government ought to finally follow through in terms of the many years of promises of a solid, long term farm safety net program. We need it and we have been insisting on it, and there is no better time than these days ahead to put that into practice.
During this session of parliament we hope the Liberals will view those who till the soil as at least equal to some of the companies across other parts of the country, such as Bombardier, that make up the so-called new economy. Air Canada has asked Ottawa for some $3 billion to $4 billion or it may have to file for bankruptcy. Well the fact is that many farmers have already had to file for bankruptcy and it has created enormous distress. Help lines have been set up across the west and elsewhere in the country. Forgive us if we fail to see the justice in a possible $3 billion to $4 billion bailout if the government goes down that road.
The Liberals have failed to clearly address the root causes of the farm income crisis which has been further hampered by the drought arriving on the heels of disastrously low commodity prices. Farmers need immediate emergency financial help and they need it now.
The Canadian Alliance has a plan which we have laid out very clearly over a period of time after consultations with farmers and by holding town hall meetings. It is a plan to deal with the immediate crisis and includes a long term vision so that our agriculture industry becomes as vibrant as it once was in the country.
It is obvious, if one looks at the record in Hansard , in committee and so on, that the Alliance considers agriculture as one of its top parliamentary priorities. Everyone can be assured that the Alliance's efforts on behalf of farmers will not abate.
This was the fifth driest year on record for my province of Saskatchewan, but I do not want to seem to be concerned only about my backyard. I had the opportunity to spend some time in the maritimes this past summer travelling with our leader, the member for Okanagan--Coquihalla. When we were in the province of New Brunswick we saw some of the effects of the drought. New Brunswick received only 17.3 millimetres of rain in July compared with normal precipitation in the range of about 102 millimetres.
Livestock producers are searching for water and are being forced to sell off their land in parts of the country. The impact of the drought is hurting cattle ranchers in B.C., on the prairies, in Quebec, in Ontario and in the maritimes.
The Medicine Hat office of the PFRA has estimated that 95% of surface water in southern Alberta is depleted. Some of those pastures may bounce back, but they will not regain full productivity until maybe a decade down the road.
When we visited New Brunswick we saw that ranchers and farmers are hurting because of the drought or the lack of rain. They estimate that their forage crops will be down by 25% to 40% in that province.
I will describe some of the impacts in Saskatchewan and the riding of Saskatoon--Wanuskewin which I have the privilege to represent. Oilseed production is down. Canola production is down by 38% from last year. Durum wheat has fallen by 49%, almost by half from last year, to the lowest level in recent history.
The drought is not only affecting the west or my backyard but also Ontario. Corn production is down by 20%. Soybean production is down by 25%.
We met with the head of the potato board of the Prince Edward Island Federation of Agriculture. He indicated to us that the lack of rain was expected to cut the 2001 yield crop of vegetables by at least half, if not more. That reduces the gross farm revenue by at least $62.5 million. This is pretty significant. It is not an isolated or remote spot in Saskatchewan. It is in different parts of the country.
I draw to everyone's attention some of the things that must be done, as has already been suggested by members. We have had years of neglect by the Liberal government. We are now faced with the drought and the impact of disastrously low commodity prices.
The minister of agriculture needs to get a special committee together to carefully analyze the grains and oilseed sector crisis we face.
Ranchers are asking for something that is very reasonable. They are liquidating their herds because of the drought. They want to be able to defer the tax on that sale for at least one year to allow them to repurchase breeding stock. Asking for that one year extension is not unreasonable.
Members of the official opposition on this side of the House have often talked of how existing safety net programs need to be dramatically improved to ensure they meet the needs of our farmers. Some of the suggestions for change have come from our agriculture critic, the hon. member for Selkirk--Interlake. I commend him for the consistent job he has been doing over a considerable time keeping us rallied, focused and hammering on this issue.
With respect to existing safety net programs, the crop insurance program needs to be significantly improved to ensure that it covers all the costs that producers incur in seeding their crop.
The regulations surrounding natural disasters need to be amended to ensure that farmers receive compensation for inputs lost due to natural disasters, as we are facing now. If that had been in place in southeastern Saskatchewan and southwestern Manitoba, they would have received disaster assistance on the other side of the equation when they had flooded farmland back in 1998.
The net income stabilization account must be made more accessible. I have talked to countless farmers on numerous occasions who have told me how they need to be able to get better access to NISA. The calculation of NISA eligible costs should be adjusted to include grain transportation costs as well.
We have suggested other practical things such as reducing the costs imposed on farmers by the federal government. We have some pretty excessive taxes on things like farm fuel, user fees, taxes on taxes, and taxes on inputs.
We need to encourage farmer driven value added processing. The Canadian Wheat Board market monopoly is a hindrance that gets in the way. It should get out of the way so that farmers can get on with the job. That is what farmers want. They want marketing choice. Farmers' costs should be reduced by modernizing the grain handling and transportation system.
The Canadian Alliance policies have been built through continued consultations with farmers and farm groups. We put together the action for struggling agriculture producers, ASAP for short. It heard from more than 3,500 farmers at 70 different meetings in five provinces.
The member for Battlefords--Lloydminster was very instrumental in that and a key player. It was pushed forward by our lead critic, the hon. member for Selkirk--Interlake. Our consultations will not stop. They will continue.
We have put in considerable effort and we need to build on that. Our leader, the member for Okanagan--Coquihalla, has been in the forefront of this in Parliament. After the last election there was a letter to the Prime Minister and we have gone after this in question period time and again. We have made almost a hundred statements on the issue. A variety of farm issues have come up that we have pressed on and that we will continue to press on.
We had a vote in the House asking for an additional $400 million in emergency help and the Liberals voted it down. The Canadian Alliance will continue the fight. We will fight for farmers. We have been leading the fight for farmers in recent years and we will continue. For more details on these efforts I would ask all those interested to visit our agriculture website at www.canadianalliance.caagriculture.