Mr. Chair, I thank the minister for being here tonight, especially because of the serious problem we have in the country.
I was talking with a group of dairy farmers and feedlot operators. After listening to this debate tonight in Parliament, what do I say to a farmer like David Whelton who has been a farmer for a long time and is now losing his shirt?
I am sure that David Whelton and his friends and colleagues in the farming industry will understand and agree that what the minister is doing in trying to open the border is a great thing. However, what they want to know is what do they do in the short term when they do not fit in the program and will be closing down probably in the weeks coming up. What do we say to those farmers and their families?
What do we say to those farmers who used to get $1,600 for one cow and today get $300 or $500 a cow even though steaks still sell at the super value for the same price? Farmers want to know what is happening to the money from the government? They want to know why it is only the packing industry that is getting it and not the farmers when the farmers are the ones losing their shirts? I would like the minister to answer that.
The farmers want to know what they are going to do in the short term? That is the question they want the minister to answer tonight.