Madam Speaker, I want to commend my colleague for Medicine Hat. He has spoken on these agricultural issues many times and I know that he spoke very eloquently for the member for Lethbridge who, unfortunately, could not be here this evening.
In the short time I have I want to really express the frustration on behalf of farmers in Prince George--Peace River and indeed all across Canada. I do not understand, as the member for Medicine Hat just reiterated, why it is that the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food would stand up and defend the bureaucracy against the farmers.
I farmed for 20 years and was involved in farm politics. I know the frustration in the 1980s and it is still the same frustration today. We have programs designed by bureaucrats to service bureaucrats instead of being designed to help farmers. I do not understand why the parliamentary secretary and the Minister of Agriculture would stand tonight and defend this program that is not working.