Canadian Wheat Board Act  moved that the bill, as amended, be concurred in.

Canadian Wheat Board Act  Mr. Speaker, I have a few remarks to address precisely to the subject matter of Motion No. 3. Once again the member who has just spoken and others have tempted me to broaden the discussion this afternoon. I will not do that. There will be ample opportunities for that. I will welcome those opportunities and if hon. members want a sneak preview of some of my views and opinions on the subject they seem to be amply reported almost on a continuous basis in the media so they can whet their appetites on those observations and we will get to the main subject matter in due course.

Canadian Wheat Board Act  During the course of the debate this afternoon on the various motions that we have had before us members opposite have invited me in my responses to go quite a distance beyond the precise subject matter that is the focus of the debate today. While I am indeed tempted to respond at length and in a wide ranging way to some of the remarks that have been made by all of the speakers this afternoon on Motions Nos. 1, 2, 4 and 5, I will continue my practice of restricting myself to the precise subject matter that forms the point of the debate and save the wider ranging commentary for another time.

Canadian Wheat Board Act  Mr. Speaker, I have enjoyed and appreciated the opportunity to listen to the remarks that have been delivered by all members with respect to three of the motions that are before us, Motion No. 1, Motion No. 4 and Motion No. 5. I will confine my remarks at this point in the debate to those three specific motions.

Canadian Wheat Board Act  Mr. Speaker, I do intend to speak with respect to both groupings of amendments. However, with the permission of the House I would prefer to wait until all relevant comments have been made so that I could respond to them all together, once I have heard all members of the opposition on the points they wish to raise.

Co-Operatives  Mr. Speaker, today in my capacity as federal minister responsible for co-operatives, I wish to recognize National Co-op Week in Canada and to pay tribute to these unique, democratic institutions and organizations that play such a significant role in the socioeconomic fabric of Canada.

Agriculture  Mr. Speaker, the hon. member only tells part of the story. In fact there are two rallies taking place in Regina today, one in favour of his point of view and one in favour of the other point of view. He should be a little more even handed. I was invited to attend one of those meetings.

Agriculture  Mr. Speaker, the question refers to some farmers. It is my intention in this very important debate about grain marketing systems to make sure that I listen carefully and accurately to all farmers. I would advise the Reform Party to do the same.

Canadian Wheat Board  Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Wheat Board is a strong pillar of our grains industry. The record shows, I believe, that the board has done an extraordinarily good job. However there is controversy among farmers about marketing systems and about the role of the board. We need to have a legitimate and respected mechanism to respond to that controversy.

Canadian Wheat Board  It is interesting to hear the reaction of the Reform Party which only likes to shout in the rabble and not hear the facts of the case. That is what is wrong with the debate about the Canadian Wheat Board because of the volume level of those who would rather not let the other side have their say.

Department Of Agriculture Act  moved that the bill be concurred in.

Agriculture  Mr. Speaker, I recognize the importance of this issue to the province of Saskatchewan. It is also an important issue generally because of course the principle of equity with respect to action taken in Saskatchewan must fit with the overall programming of safety nets across the country.

Agriculture  Mr. Speaker, the hon. gentleman will know that in the past with respect to safety net programs in agriculture part of the problem has been a failure in the preparation and thought process that has gone into these programs to make sure that we get them right in the first place. In this program that we are responsible for, we are making sure that we do it right in the first instance so it does not have to be fixed time and time again after the fact.

Canada Grain Act  moved that Bill C-51, an act to amend the Canada Grain Act and respecting certain regulations made pursuant to that act, be read the second time and referred to a committee. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to introduce for second reading today this legislation to amend the Canada Grain Act.

Agriculture  Mr. Speaker, sometimes those who are trying to avoid all the facts like to reduce things to simple one line answers and that is thoroughly inappropriate to these circumstances. Farmers in western Canada would tell the hon. gentleman that this is a critically important and vital subject.