July 8, 1999                                                                                                                                        For Immediate Delivery

FARMERS PROTEST BUT AGRICULTURE MINISTER WILL STILL NOT LISTEN
 "Western alienation is being fueled by Ottawa’s attitude"

Yorkton – Official Opposition Agriculture Critic, Garry Breitkreuz, MP (Yorkton – Melville) congratulates prairie farmers for their vocal and effective demonstrations in Regina and Prince Albert on July 6, 1999. "These producers were able to grab the attention of government and the country. After months the message is finally getting across that the agriculture industry is in a downward spiral and if something is not done immediately, not only farmers, but all Canadians will feel the impact," Breitkreuz stated.

However, despite the efforts of these producers, no new help is coming from Ottawa. "After Tuesday’s demonstrations I thought that Agriculture Minister, Lyle Vanclief would get the message that AIDA is a disaster and NISA is not good enough. Unfortunately, all Vanclief said was producers would have to use the flawed AIDA program and it would not be fixed to get them any financial support during these tough times. What will it take to make Ottawa realize that agriculture is important to our country and that the prairies are still part of Canada?" asked Breitkreuz.

Vanclief also said that Canada’s safety net programs would not be reviewed until November without any changes coming until February. "I don’t understand why the minister continues to ignore the plight of farmers. To date only 726 Saskatchewan farmers have received AIDA cheques totaling just $5.2 million. This is just over one per cent of Saskatchewan farmers and less than three per cent of the money that was supposed to be allocated to Saskatchewan producers. By these numbers, it is evident the government’s programs are not working and changes need to be made immediately," Breitkreuz declared.

"If Mr. Vanclief does not want to change AIDA to an acreage based package, then there are other things that can be done. Immediate tax reductions on items such as fuel, fertilizer and chemicals would allow farmers to keep more dollars in their pockets. The government could also eliminate the user fees on required services like the Canadian Grain Commission and port handling fees. Eliminating all the user fees would save producers $138 million a year. Vanclief is clearly not listening; however, I urge prairie producers to continue to voice their concerns and let the government know that not enough is being done to support our agriculture sector," said Breitkreuz.

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For more information, please call:

Yorkton Office: (306) 782-3309
Ottawa Office: (613) 992-4394
e-mail: breitg@parl.gc.ca