SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 235 - Oct/19/23

Mr. Francis Drouin (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Lib.)

Oct/19/23 6:38:00 p.m.
Watch

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.

531 words

Context: House Hansard - 235 - Oct/19/23

Mr. Francis Drouin (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Lib.)

Oct/19/23 6:55:36 p.m.
Watch

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.

439 words

Context: House Hansard - 235 - Oct/19/23

Mr. Francis Drouin

Oct/19/23 6:59:59 p.m.
Watch

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.

142 words