Mr. Chair, there are recommendations in it. I would recommend that the minister take them to heart.
Without government payments, last year farmers would have been in the negative. As the leader of the official opposition indicated, we did put a lot of money out. Last year, over and above normal programming, we put out approximately $2 billion, totalling close to $6 billion of all programs, yet farmers still find themselves in difficulty.
I want to make the point that the problem is not the farmers. Some in the public would ask why we continue to put money out to farmers. Canadian farmers are among the most productive in the world. They contribute to our balance of trade. They are responsible for one in eight jobs in Canada. Canada is the fourth largest exporter of agriculture and agrifood products in the world. We have increased our food exports to $25 billion. Farmers are doing their part. The problem is that other players in the system are gaining the profits.
When we look at our farms and examine the facts closely, every economic indicator is positive: production, revenue, exports, output per acre, output per farmer, cost per unit, et cetera, every indicator that is, except net farm income. As farmers produce more, export more and produce more efficiently, farmers are rewarded with less. That is unacceptable.
The Prime Minister has said that he wants to move to a cost of production program. We have no disagreement with that. In fact, we favour cost of production, but members opposite and the Prime Minister have to understand that we have to get from here to there. In the meantime, the 10,000 farmers who were here on the Hill yesterday need ad hoc funding. They need a program in place to carry them over until we can get to those kinds of policies. We will be supportive in terms of cost of production, but in the interim, farmers need cash and they need it now. We need a commitment from the Prime Minister and the Minister of Agriculture to get that ad hoc funding money out there prior to spring planting.
The Prime Minister talked about scrapping CAIS. There is no question that program has to be fixed, but keep in mind if the program was not in place, the $5 billion that went out to farmers over the last two years would not have gone out. It is not enough to say scrap it; we have to replace it with a program that assists farmers with cash.
In the election campaign the Prime Minister and the Conservatives talked about $500 million more. The impression was left with the farm community by those members opposite that the $500 million more was actually more, but as compared to what the previous government did, it is actually $1.2 billion less. I would like to see somebody stand and deny it. The $500 million is over and above regular safety net programming. It is not over and above what the previous government paid out. It is $1.2 billion less. I am asking the Minister of Agriculture and others on the other side to commit to pay that $500 million per year over and above what the previous government actually paid out. That is what farmers require.
The last point I will make before I close is that in an interview the other day, the Minister of Agriculture basically said, “Don't blame me. Blame the provinces”. If we are going to develop agriculture policy in this country--