Agriculture and Forestry Minister Eric Hammill says he is very satisfied with the tentative agreement reached between federal and provincial ministers today on a plan for farm safety net programs over the next three years. The plan includes basic safety net programming and an income disaster component.
"The agreement moves to a 'value of agriculture' basis for allocating federal dollars and this is something government and industry here on Prince Edward Island have been fighting for over the past two years, so we're very happy with the outcome," said Mr. Hammill. The agreement would provide $665 million for basic safety net programs such as NISA and crop insurance, and $435 million for disaster programs such as the Agriculture Income Disaster Assistance (AIDA) program.
Under the new agreement, Prince Edward Island's allocation of federal dollars for basic programs would increase from $5.3 million to $7.2 million per year. The province cost share in the agreement is 40 percent, with the federal contribution at 60 percent.
Lyle Vanclief, the federal minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, will be seeking funding to ensure no province receives less than its current share. He will also be seeking Cabinet approval for the third year of disaster assistance funding. This would bring the total federal commitment to safety net funding to more than $3.3 billion for the next three years.
Mr. Hammill said that the proposed tighter connection between NISA and disaster programming will help ensure NISA is used effectively and support its position as a key element in national safety net programs.
The minister said the talks over the past two days were an excellent example of cooperation among the provinces and the Government of Canada and that the deal reached meets the needs of Canadian producers. He thanked the Prince Edward Island agriculture industry for its support in bringing about the proposed agreement.
"Consultations with our industry have been an essential part of developing the Prince Edward Island position and this partnership has been very effective," said Mr. Hammill.