Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Saskatoon--Rosetown--Biggar for allowing me to share my comments today.
I rise to add to the debate concerning the supply day motion put forth by the Conservative Party of Canada. The motion reads:
That the government reallocate its resources from wasteful and unnecessary programs such as the sponsorship program, or badly managed programs such as the gun registry, to address the agricultural crisis at the farm gate across Canada.
Farmers in my riding of Perth--Middlesex are seriously concerned about their future. Farming is a billion dollar industry in my riding and it is a huge issue for us.
I have met with many commodity groups from my riding and I have listened to their concerns. They are worried about their future and whether the federal government cares about them. Based on the actions of the government, I cannot say I blame them.
The beef industry is suffering because of BSE. Too often we fail to consider that it is not just the beef industry that has been impacted by the crisis, but agriculture and the agri-food industry have been impacted as well.
I have met with representatives of the Perth County Federation of Agriculture to listen to their concerns. It has been a tough time for our farmers. I must let the House know that supply management was a big part of that. When I was at the WTO talks, we were strong on supply management. It is not something that this side of the House would get rid of.
One issue that has not received much attention from the current government is the state of rural Canada, specifically, its economy, infrastructure, and agriculture. The recent throne speech had very little about rural Canada. It further illustrated the low priority the Liberal government has for rural Canada.
Rural communities are concerned about their long-term survival. Rural residents prefer rural living but are concerned about their jobs and the lack of job prospects. Most youth growing up in rural Canada have no choice but to find work in urban centres.
The new Conservative Party, its caucus, and its candidates, know the importance of rural Canada. We have an action plan that will revitalize our rural communities. The current government has no plan.
Where is the plan to keep our rural communities competitive? Many manufacturing jobs, particularly those in the auto sector of southwestern Ontario, have been lost because of the high Canadian dollar and declining auto sales. The government has done nothing. There was nothing in the throne speech about that important sector of our economy and little on rural development.
The BSE issue has devastated the beef industry and has indirectly impacted our agri-food industries like trucking, seed companies, dead stock removal, farm implement dealers, and replacement heifers to name just a few. Thousands of Canadians work in these businesses and are being laid off because of the downturn. Still the government has taken no notice.
There is a crisis in rural infrastructure. This encompasses several areas, including health care, municipalities, water, sewage, bridges, housing, transit, schools, and rail transportation. Cuts in transfer payments over the years are starting to show. The provinces and rural communities do not have the financial stability to pick up the slack.
Farming and agriculture, in general, have not received the kind of respect and fair treatment that they deserve from the federal government. CAIS is not the answer according to many in the farm community. Many farmers in my riding do not have the money to get into the CAIS program.
Our rural communities suffer when our farmers and their agri-food industries are suffering. The fact that farming received two sentences in the throne speech speaks volumes about the government's priorities. The future of rural Canada depends on a vibrant rural economy, solid infrastructure, and a healthy agricultural sector.
I will refer to an e-mail that I got on Thursday, February 5 about an article entitled “Cattle producers hail mad cow report”. From Regina, it stated:
An international panel of experts reviewing the American discovery of mad cow disease said the U.S. should show leadership by stopping “irrational trade barriers,” a comment welcomed by Canadian cattle producers anxious for trade to resume.
The report, authored by five scientists...says the mad cow case found December 23 in Washington State can't be dismissed as an imported case.
Wildeman said the panel's findings further Canada's position that if a country has adopted adequate disease prevention standards, trade can resume.
“Those people that are prepared for political reasons to stand up and say we shouldn't reopen the border put their credibility at risk...Who do they point to for evidence that trade shouldn't be normalized...[again].
“Therefore the subcommittee recommends that the U.S...encourage the discontinuation of irrational trade barriers when countries identify their first case of BSE.”
The report also recommended the U.S. increase BSE testing, but dismissed the notion that all cattle slaughtered for human consumption should be tested.
Here is something I have been thinking about. I have had various comments from some of my producers and some of the people around this. Part of this might be figured out through the reopening of the mothballed MGI plant in Kitchener, Ontario. I very much hand it to the Gencor people for taking over the plant and working toward rectifying some of the problems with the cull cow market. They intend to open in early April, I think, probably killing 200 to 300 cull cows per week with a total of 1,500 as time goes on. Unbeknownst to me, a lot of the cattle we do export from the country are brought back in as processed meat. We do not have the capacity to process it, so we feel there could be a market there.
One thing has crossed my mind as we keep hearing that the money the government puts out to help agriculture in difficult times does not get to the farm gate. I have to say that when the new Minister of Agriculture took his little junket to Japan to tell the Japanese that our science was safe and that our beef was safe, I think the Japanese said that they test all their cattle. By the time the minister had left and had said our science was good, the Japanese said they test all their cattle.
I feel that what we should do in that particular case, if we do want to get into that market, is test all our cattle that are for export. We should put some finances toward a good testing regime. We do not have to test our domestic market; Canadians have said that. They have increased the amount of their consumption. They know our product is safe. But if we are in a market, bidding for a contract, then we have to comply with the rules of contract.
There is one other thing that is an environmental issue in regard to the fisheries and oceans department. We have a tremendous problem in our area--and I think in the farming community--with fencing of water courses in flood plains. Some of these people have had cattle grazing on flood plains for years. Right now they are being threatened by the environment ministry and by the fisheries and oceans department. They are being told they have to shut down or fence. We cannot fence. It does not make sense. If we till it, we will cause more pollution.
These are some of the various things that the farm community is getting beat on very heavily.
