Public Accounts committee  No, it's the provinces that generally it. We have a framework whereby either jurisdiction can trigger the framework; however, in most cases it's the provinces that do so. They tend to be closer, on the ground with the producers, so it tends to be the provinces that come forth with the request.

Public Accounts committee  Yes. The nine months includes all of the time from when you announce the program to putting the applications out and seeking to have the producer make application, to then making the payment. The nine months is not simply the “make the payment” portion. To take your example of a flood or a drought situation, we often find that we can respond to the immediate impacts of not having the crop through our normal programs.

Public Accounts committee  I think it speaks to one of the first steps that we have outlined in our response, which is to go and verify, with the provinces and in discussions with producer organizations, what our time commitments should be to the industry with respect to the evaluation of the assessment processes.