Report From Parliament's Hill

By Prince George - Peace River M.P. Jay Hill

Since May 1^st, the crop of good news for Canadian farmers has been plentiful.

It began with the welcome announcement by federal Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl that farmers will be paid $400-million in Cost of Production Payments starting in June 2007.  The payment will help producers deal with the rising costs they’ve faced over the past few years. 

In order to continue to address increasing production costs, our Conservative Government will further pay up to $100-million in coming years into producer savings accounts.  Most producers will automatically receive a payment. For those who did not participate in the Canadian Agricultural Income Stabilization (CAIS) program for 2004 or who began farming after 2004, they must complete an application, which is available by calling 1-888-367-8506 or at www.agr.gc.ca/cop.

This year’s Cost of Production payments are part of a $1-billion commitment in Budget 2007 to improve national farm income programs.  A kick-start payment of $600-million will also be paid out to farmers savings accounts once an agreement is reached with the provinces and territories.

Next up was news the federal government is delivering on its commitment to provide a new and improved loan program for farmers.  Changes to the Advance Payments Program (APP) mean that cash advances are available for spring and fall under a single program.

Livestock and additional crops, including berries, are now eligible; the limit on cash advances has increased from $250,000 to $400,000; the amount of money available interest free has doubled from $50,000 to $100,000; and the maximum time for producers to repay cash advances has been extended from 12 to 18 months.

And last week, Minister Strahl came to Prince George to announce that ranchers in British Columbia affected by the 2006 drought will receive $7.5-million in assistance from the federal and provincial governments.  The assistance program extends to livestock producers in the Regional Districts of Stikine, Kitimat-Stikine, Peace River (where the worst of the drought was experienced), Bulkley-Nechako, Fraser-Fort George, and Cariboo.

A total of $4.5-million will be paid directly to livestock producers while $3-million will support individual or community-based water development initiatives, along with measures to help producers deal with the effects of drought and to assess and mitigate crop damage and feed losses due to wildlife.

The deadline to apply is June 29th.  If you are registered with CAIS you will automatically be mailed an application.  If you do not receive an application form by the end of May, you should call 1-800-667-8567.

Minister Strahl has been working closely with producer groups and the provincial governments since we took office to address the inadequacies in Canada’s agricultural programs.   The input of these groups, such as the BC Cattlemen’s Association and the BC Grain Producers Association, has been instrumental in enabling our government to establish new programs and to improve old ones in order to better respond to the needs of farmers. 

Overall, the Conservative Government has now provided a total of $4.5-BILLION to farmers through Budget 2006 and Budget 2007 measures. 

Spring is a time of renewed hope for a better year ahead and May has already proven to be an excellent month for our family farms.

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