Released on March 30, 2005
Canada's Ministers of Agriculture welcomed the federal government's announcement of a $1 billion aid package for the agriculture sector today, while rejecting additional provincial funding for the initiative.A joint statement issued by the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec and Saskatchewan applauded Federal Agriculture Minister Andy Mitchell for a federal initiative aimed at improving cash flow for struggling Canadian farm families.
We wish to commend the Government of Canada for making such a substantial investment in short term relief for our nation's farm families. This package is a significant commitment from the federal government to Canada's agriculture sector.
All governments acknowledge that the combination of economic pressures resulting from BSE, depressed commodity prices and ongoing trade disputes has put our entire agriculture sector in an extremely difficult financial position.
However, our individual provinces already have committed unprecedented resources to this crisis and to long-term programs developed for the national Agricultural Policy Framework.
The federal government alone has the fiscal capacity to deliver an equitable, national agricultural support program without compromising commitments to priorities such as health, education and infrastructure.
All provinces have raised the issue of affordability for agricultural support programs with the federal government in the past. This remains a crucial issue that requires further discussion and resolution. We look forward to that discussion at our next meeting.
Canada's next scheduled meeting of Federal/Provincial/Territorial Agriculture Ministers is set for July in Kananaskis, Alberta.
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