Mr. Speaker, the Thunder Bay, Rainy River, Kenora and Algoma districts have been suffering from a severe drought for nearly 12 months.
Cattle producers have been forced to sell down their stock and farmers have no money with which to buy supplies for the spring seeding.
The Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and his parliamentary secretary have both indicated that money is available. The minister stood in the House on April 17 and said he had put forward a disaster relief framework to which all provinces have agreed.
It has been three long weeks since the minister announced $7.5 million in drought relief funding for Prince George, British Columbia, but the farmers across northwestern Ontario continue to wait for help.
I call on the minister to stop the delays and provide funds to help the farmers in Thunder Bay, Rainy River, Kenora and Algoma districts.