Ottawa-“The Budget is a bad budget from my perspective in many ways, but primarily because it once again ignores our farmers and what’s happening on the Prairies to family farms,” said Ed Komarnicki, MP for Souris-Moose Mountain.

This past Monday, Komarnicki responded to the budget speech, and criticized the government for failing farmers in its budget.

He criticized the government for not immediately dropping the CAIS deposit requirement and urged the government to make a cash acreage payment to put some hope back into the farming operation before spring seeding. “Quite frankly,’ said Komarnicki, “I don’t think the government senses the economic realities on the prairies.”

During an emergency debate on the continued border closure to the shipment of live cattle into the U.S., Komarnicki criticized Agriculture Minister, Andy Mitchell for failing to make a case to the United States Department of Agriculture, based on facts, data and evidence and for not being properly prepared to make the government’s case before the U.S. District Judge.

During the Budget Speech, Komarnicki stated that despite tough economic times and the closure of the American border, the government has chosen to cancel the Farm Improvement Loan Program without sufficiently studying the effects it would have on Saskatchewan farmers.

“The realized net income in Saskatchewan is projected to drop $486 million in the negative,” said Komarnicki. “In light of the continuing cash crisis, what was the government thinking when it cancelled the Farm Improvement Loans and when did so without consulting agriculture producers?”

Saskatchewan happened to utilize that program, 70% of the total program usage across all of Canada. A cancellation of the Program, when Saskatchewan has such a high utilization rate can’t help but lead one to the conclusion that Saskatchewan rural interests are not given sufficient weight and that in fact, Saskatchewan is being targeted.