Madam Speaker, I welcome the minister's remarks, although I disagree with many of them because there is nothing in the budget for the basic industries in Prince Edward Island at the production level.
We welcomed the announcement by the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans the other day on the infrastructure funding for barns and a racetrack in Summerside. I am wondering if the precedent she set there would apply to other federal government programs. The precedent she set was a federal share of 91.2% of the funding for that racetrack, yet there are other infrastructure programs that only get one-third, one-third, one-third. Municipalities cannot do it. I want to know if that sets a precedent for the federal government. Can we expect 90% funding for other racetracks in the country, for other infrastructure in some of the basic industries?
P.E.I.'s hog and beef industry is in trouble. Our potato industry is in trouble. The current minister and a previous minister announced $12.4 million for crop loss during the election, but only $3 million of that has been spent. Those industries remain in trouble.
Is the minister going to allow $9 million of that money to come back to Ottawa when it is needed in Prince Edward Island, or is she going to assure us here today that it will go to those basic industries?