44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 19, 2023 10:00AM
- Oct/19/23 6:38:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, since this is my first chance to take part in a discussion with you in the chair, I want to congratulate you on your new role. I want you to know that you have my full respect and confidence, as is my duty as an MP.
I want to thank my colleague from Yorkton—Melville for this opportunity to talk about our support for producers in Saskatchewan who are impacted by severe drought conditions.
Our hearts go out to producers during these extremely challenging times. With winter coming, cattle producers are facing difficult decisions about their herds, and many producers have suffered lower grain yields because of drought. We are talking about the cumulative damage of multiple years of drought on pastures and forage production, leading to low feed supply for livestock producers.
To address the member's question, the federal government is working as quickly as possible with the Saskatchewan government on AgriRecovery, and we will have more to say on this very soon.
AgriRecovery allows federal, provincial and territorial governments to work together when natural disasters like this occur. Just so the producers understand, this is not a federal- or provincial-only decision. Both the province and the federal assessors get together and make an assessment based on the AgriRecovery framework they have both signed on to, with a five-year agreement, to say yes, this is a natural disaster or drought that has impacted our producers, and they work within that framework. We have a lot of experience, unfortunately, with the B.C. floods and with hurricane Fiona. In fact, this is something that both provincial assessors and federal assessors have too much experience with because of climate change disasters.
Producers can help write down this income by claiming the cost of buying new breeding animals for the following year. This will reduce the tax burden from the original sale. Again, the goal is to help producers who are facing difficult herd management decisions.
Saskatchewan producers also have access to all of our business risk management programs. Business risk management programs are the first line of defence for producers facing disasters like this one. Our government has already supported Saskatchewan's request for an increase to the interim payment rate of AgriStability from 50% to 75%. We have increased the compensation rate for AgriStability from 70% to 80%, starting with the 2023 program year. That means more support in times of need. We have also partnered with the province on a one-year adjustment to the AgriInsurance program to make more drought-damaged crops available for feed. The vast majority of Saskatchewan producers enrolled in forage insurance have received payments, and 60% of their premiums are covered by the federal government.
My message is that our government is here for Saskatchewan farmers. They deserve and have our unwavering support.
I have been to Saskatchewan. The minister has been to Saskatchewan. We will always have the backs of our farmers and cattle producers. We know they are going through a rough time. I know the member is advocating for her constituents, and I respect that. We will have good news to share with members very shortly.
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- Oct/19/23 6:43:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my hon. colleague's comments. Obviously with AgriRecovery, it is not a provincial or federal decision. It is a decision made by the federal and provincial governments, as we have done with B.C., as we have done with P.E.I. and as we have done with Nova Scotia. The timeline will be the same. We will respect both timelines.
I know when folks are facing a crisis, it can never be quick enough. However, I assure my hon. colleague that the minister and our government have the hearts of cattlemen and livestock producers in Saskatchewan in mind. We will have a timely response in due time.
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- Oct/19/23 6:47:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, obviously the Government of Canada takes any allegation of foreign interference extremely seriously. The minister has personally engaged with Chinese counterparts on this issue, as the hon. member well knows, and we will never tolerate any form of foreign interference in Canada.
As my hon. colleague is aware, in May of this year, after careful consideration, we declared persona non grata Mr. Zhao Wei, who held the position of consul at the consulate-general of the People's Republic of China in Toronto. In August, our government publicized information about a disinformation campaign on WeChat that targeted the member of Parliament from Wellington—Halton Hills. This campaign centred on spreading false narratives about his identity, including commentary and claims about his background, political stances and family heritage.
We assessed that it was highly probable that China played a role in this campaign, and we raised strong objections about this activity with China's ambassador to Canada.
Over the past year we have also raised strong objections with China's ambassador regarding the overseas police stations in Canada and demanded their closure. The RCMP has reported that these stations are no longer operational, and the RCMP is the right authority to act on that, not politicians.
Foreign interference emanating from China and other countries is a significant danger to Canada's sovereignty, prosperity and social fabric. We will continue to do everything that is necessary to protect Canadians from this threat. Canada will continue to uphold global laws that have ensured global stability since the end of the Second World War, and we will continue to work with our allies on this.
Canada remains firm in our resolve that defending Canada's democracy is of the utmost importance. We have stated time and time again that foreign interference activities in Canada are in violation of Canada's sovereignty and are unacceptable. The government, our government, will continue to choose the most effective tools from the wide range of options at our disposal to properly combat foreign interference.
As the hon. member knows, there is an ongoing public inquiry on foreign interference with a focus on examining and assessing interference by China, Russia and other actors, in our last two federal elections. Our government has also established a national counter-foreign interference coordinator and office within Public Safety Canada, which includes oversight for economic security. As he knows, budget 2023 allocated $13.5 million for this purpose. The same budget allocated $48.9 million to the RCMP over three years to help protect Canadians against harassment and intimidation from authoritarian regimes.
We will continue to work with allies. The fact that there is foreign interference, whether it is in Canada, the U.S. or other allied countries, is not new. We must continue working with our allies. We will continue to work with our proper authorities, like the RCMP, whether they are CSIS, CSE or our other security agencies across Canada, to ensure that foreign interference is not present in Canada, but we must continue working with our allies across the world.
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- Oct/19/23 6:52:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, obviously the Government of Canada will always defend Canadian citizens. This is not partisan. This is its job.
Foreign interference is an issue. It is not unique to Canada but happening in a superpower such as the U.S., in France and in the U.K. We must always work with our allies to ensure that foreign influence, whether from China, Russia or Iran, is combatted among and with our allies. That is the only way we will be successful in making sure that foreign interference is gone from Canada.
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- Oct/19/23 6:55:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, obviously, when farmers go through droughts or climate change events, it is serious. Unfortunately, they are going through this too often.
The good news, although it is unfortunate, is that whether provincial or federal assessors, they are getting too used to assessing climate change events through the AgriRecovery programs. As my hon. colleague would know, with respect to AgriRecovery, when a request is made, the province will send a letter to the federal government asking for an assessment. The province and the federal government will do the assessment together and assess whether it fits into the framework.
The hon. member knows that there are business risk management programs. Farmers already have access to that through the sustainable Canadian agricultural partnership program. I know he knows that. Whether farmers go through a climate change event, have a bad year or have a bad crop, whatever the reason for it, they already have access to the business risk management program.
After that, when the risk gets higher, if it is shared among other farmers, then the province gets access to the AgriRecovery framework. As I explained, the province would write a letter to the federal government requesting an assessment that they would do jointly as to whether it does respect the framework they have assigned.
For instance, I know the hon. member would know about the B.C. floods a few years ago. Many farmers went through hardships. I know many dairy farmers did. I was in the Fraser Valley, which was flooded, where farmers were growing fruits and vegetables. Some were raising livestock, which unfortunately had to be killed because of the major floods that happened. With respect to public safety, the province and the federal government worked together, and then AgriRecovery kicked in to ensure that the other losses that were not covered by the regular programs would have covered the existent losses that farmers were not eligible for through existing programs.
I can assure the member that, whether it is with respect to the B.C. floods or the hurricane in P.E.I. and Nova Scotia, the timeline will be respected. I know that when farmers are facing a crisis, it can never be fast enough. It is the same thing with insurance; when we are facing a crisis, it can never be fast enough. However, I assure you that the federal government and the B.C. government take to heart the fact that farmers are facing a crisis and will be there with good news to tell B.C. farmers in the northern part of the province. Farmers will be happy with the results.
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- Oct/19/23 6:59:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I know where the hon. member comes from, and I know he is doing a good job of representing his constituents and his farmers.
As I have said before, no response is fast enough when someone is going through a crisis. However, I can assure the hon. member that the B.C. government and the federal government are working hand in hand to respond as quickly as possible to farmers in order to ensure that they get the proper response. I can assure the hon. member's farmers, as they have gone through the B.C. floods in 2021, that they will be compensated with the program, through AgriRecovery. We will respond in due time. All I am asking for is patience for a few more days. I know they will get a proper response in a short few days.
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