December 8, 1998                                                                                                           For Immediate Delivery

SURVEY SAYS "FARMERS NEED HELP AND THEY NEED IT NOW"
"Producers tell me they need both emergency cash and a long term safety net."

Ottawa – Today, Garry Breitkreuz, MP for Yorkton-Melville and Deputy Critic for Agriculture, released the results of a survey circulated throughout the constituency on the Farm Income Crisis. "The response to this survey has been overwhelming. I have received more than 1000 replies to this informal poll and 92% of the respondents agree that there is a Farm Income Crisis. Eighty-seven per cent believe that the crisis is having a direct impact on their lives," stated Breitkreuz. "If there was any doubt in the minds of the Agriculture Minister or his Cabinet colleagues that this is not a crisis, this survey should convince them," said Breitkreuz.

"Through all of September and October, the Agriculture Minister said that NISA and Crop Insurance should be good enough to get farmers through this tough period. Producers have shot down this point of view with an overwhelming 88% saying NISA and Crop Insurance will not be sufficient to get them through this farm income crisis. This should be a wake-up call for the Minister of Agriculture that the safety net programs currently in place are not good enough for prairie producers."

A farm aid package is expected to be announced tomorrow by the government. "I hope the Minister of Agriculture realizes the importance of this compensation package to prairie producers. When given five choices as to what type of support farmers need, 47% of the respondents to the survey chose emergency compensation as their number one requirement to get them through this income crunch," stated Breitkreuz.

"The Minister also has to be very careful as to how this compensation package is distributed. Comments to my office indicate farmers want a very simple system that is fair for all. Forty-four per cent of respondents say the package should come in the form of a per acre payment, or livestock production assistance package, with a cap for both. Farmers also ask that these programs be easy to administer and produce results in a very short period of time. Producers do not want to see all of the money from a farm aid package eaten up in administrative costs. They say it’s absolutely critical that the money reach their bank accounts before spring seeding," said Breitkreuz.

"As the government prepares to introduce an emergency assistance program, I hope they realize this is not the solution to the problems in agriculture. There needs to be a firm commitment to fight foreign subsidies, reduce taxes for all Canadians including farmers and create a more open agriculture sector that will allow producers to market their product as they see fit," concluded Breitkreuz.

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The Office of Garry Breitkreuz, M.P.

Yorkton: (306) 782-3309
Ottawa: (613) 992-4394