These comments are direct quotations from the Hansard
documents.
Farmers Desperate
Mr. Peter Adams
(Peterborough, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of
Agriculture and Agri-Food. I know the minister is working hard on the BSE
file. I know that the Prime Minister made that issue a priority for his
meeting with President Bush, but complications following the discovery of
BSE in the United States have made farmers in my riding desperate.
I represent 1,000 beef, dairy, sheep, goat and buffalo farmers and their
families. Can the minister give us some hope that there will be an end to
the BSE crisis and give us an update on the U.S. investigation into BSE?
Hon. Bob Speller (Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Lib.): Mr.
Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for his question and I also want
to thank the members of my caucus who have pushed for a take note debate
tonight on this very serious issue.
I want to assure him and all hon. members today that the Government of
Canada takes this issue very seriously and that we will continue to work
hard internationally to get the borders open to Canadian beef. I also want
to thank the hon. member for bringing up the United States peer review
report, which of course was announced today, and it is one that the
government--
The Speaker: The hon. member for Portage--Lisgar.
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