Mr. Speaker, this past Wednesday the people of Saskatchewan learned that their provincial NDP government would be providing the so-called Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board with $30,000 of their hard-earned tax dollars to sue the federal government over removal of barley from the Canadian Wheat Board's monopoly.
Not only is this a gross misuse of taxpayers' money, it is a slap in the face to our farmers who will finally have the opportunity to market their own grain on August 1 of this year.
Mr. Calvert and his NDP government are truly in desperate times, but even still the premier completely ignores the majority of agricultural producers who want an end to the Wheat Board's monopoly on barley.
Could it be that he feels that farmers do not deserve the opportunity to market their own grain, or could it be that he just does not understand the needs of the people of Saskatchewan and that it is time for a change in his NDP monopoly government as well?
Canada's new government has put into motion a real plan for our farmers in the way they market their grain. If spending taxpayers' money to sue against the will of the people is what Premier Calvert wants, then he is truly out of touch with the needs of Saskatchewan.