Howard Hilstrom

[Kyoto Protocol, November 28th, 2002]

Madam Speaker, the Kyoto agreement will have a major impact upon agriculture. Being the chief agricultural critic for the Canadian Alliance, I have been trying to see what exactly this Kyoto agreement involves and what impact it will have on agriculture. If we look at the U.S. analysis on the negative impact of Kyoto on agriculture, we will see that it will be between $30 billion or $40 billion, which will make an already less than competitive set of farmers even less competitive and that could happen in Canada.

A farmer from my area by the name of Randall Stefanson who is in the Riverton area, has done extensive post-secondary education in climate change. He has the practical experience along with a vast amount of academic education. He says that this is very bad for agriculture in Canada and it is bad for Canadians overall.

I know the member is from a farming area in Alberta. Could we hear his comments with regard to agriculture and if in fact we should know what we are getting into before we jump in?

[Petitions, November 28th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, my last petition concerns the fact that hundreds of Canadians suffer from diseases like multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury. The petitioners are calling upon Parliament to focus its legislative support on adult stem cell research to find the cures and therapies necessary to treat these illnesses.

[Petitions, November 28th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I also have a petition from people in my riding, including the municipalities and local municipal governments, saying that the tuberculosis issue in the Riding Mountain National Park needs to be taken care of and the disease eradicated from the wild herd.

[Petitions, November 28th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I have five petitions to present on three different issues. Three of the petitions concern child pornography.

Canadians are concerned that child pornography is certainly detrimental to our children and they want Parliament to protect our children by taking all the necessary legislative steps.

[Kyoto Protocol, November 27th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. There always has to be a sufficient number of members in attendance during debates to make a judgment on what is being said. I do not see a quorum here but my count may be wrong.

[Kyoto Protocol, November 26th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. My concern is that since Kyoto is such a large issue there should be a quorum in the House and I am not sure that there is a quorum.

And the count having been taken:

[Canadian Wheat Board, November 22nd, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, western farmers are not in charge of the Canadian Wheat Board. Western farmers did not get a vote to establish a monopoly. Farmers did not vote on Bill C-4 in 1998. Farmers do not set the initial price. Farmers do not vote on all 15 directors. Farmers do not vote on the appointment of the president. Farmers do not vote on amending the Canadian Wheat Board Act, only politicians can.

How can the minister say that farmers are in charge when he makes all the decisions?

[Agriculture, November 21st, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the minister knows very well that in fact the Wheat Board is not run by farmers; it is run by government appointed people. The minister also knows that farmers in the rest of Canada do not have to go through a buyback.

I am asking the minister directly, should farmers in Ontario have to go through the buyback through the Canadian Wheat Board?

[Agriculture, November 21st, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the government's incompetence on the trade front has resulted in our largest trading partner, the United States, targeting the wheat sales of prairie farmers. The Americans are alleging that the Canadian Wheat Board monopoly results in subsidized exports and dumping. Thousands of wheat farmers on the Prairies do not even want the monopoly because it results in them receiving lower prices for their wheat along with lost marketing opportunities.

Why does the government not give prairie farmers freedom of marketing choice like it does in the rest of Canada?

[National Parks, November 8th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the heritage minister does not have an action plan to eliminate tuberculosis from the Riding Mountain National Park elk herd.

Because of Liberal inaction, cattle producers in Manitoba are incurring added costs for testing live animals for TB before they leave the province. These costs are a direct result of the minister's inaction on the tuberculosis issue.

Will the government commit to paying the added cost to farmers?