National Egg Producers’ Conference

July 10, 2006

Niagara Falls, Ontario
Check Against Delivery

Introduction

National Egg Producers; farmers; ladies and gentlemen.

I’d like to thank the Conference organizers for choosing Niagara Falls for their national conference destination. Welcome to the City of Niagara Falls.

As you are all aware, on January 23, Canadians voted for change and they asked our party to lead that change.

They voted for a party that set out five key priorities for its first session of Parliament.

Not 100, not 16, not even 10 – but five key priorities in areas that are important for Canadians.

Canada’s New Government has delivered on these commitments, which are benefiting all Canadians from coast to coast.

The 5 Priorities

These priorities are:

1. Restoring Canadians’ faith in the federal
government by introducing the most sweeping accountability measures in Canada’s history.

2. Rewarding hard work and helping Canadians get
ahead by reducing the GST.

3. Protecting families, communities and Canada’s way
of life by cracking down on guns, gangs, and drugs.

4. Giving parents choice in child care by providing
direct financial support and new child care spaces.

5. Guaranteeing timely health care services to Canadians by moving towards a Patient Wait Times Guarantee.

Delivering Results for Canadians

It’s now been four months since Canada’s New Government took office.

During the last session of Parliament, our Government made significant strides in addressing each of these issues.

We made commitments to Canadians – and we’ve kept them.

Over the past 130 days, our Government has been cleaning up government and providing direct benefits to millions of ordinary, hard-working Canadians.

We have taken on the challenge of governing this country – and we have succeeded.

A quick rundown of the measures our Government has introduced clearly shows one important thing – we have done exactly what we said we would do.

Federal Accountability Act

First, we brought forward new legislation aimed at ending a culture of entitlement and making sure that Canadians receive a full account of how their hard-earned tax dollars are spent.

Indeed, the Federal Accountability Act was the first piece of legislation brought forward by our Government.

This legislation strengthens the rules and institutions that ensure transparency and accountability to Canadians.

It bans institutional and large personal donations to political parties. It also ensures that positions of public trust cannot be used as stepping stones to private lobbying.

We promised greater accountability to Canadians – and we delivered.

Federal Budget 2006

It’s no secret that Canadians are taxed too much.

We’re taxed from the time we get up in the morning until we go to bed each night.

This tax burden hurts Canadian families and serves as a disincentive for both domestic and foreign investors.

That’s why, in our first federal budget, our Government brought forward almost $20 billion in tax relief measures over the next two years – that’s more than the last four federal budgets combined.

We are:
1. Reducing the GST – from 7 per cent down to 6
percent effective July 1.

2. Providing a new $1,000 Canada Employment
Credit for working Canadians.

3. Introducing a new Transit Tax Credit.

4. Providing parents with a tax credit to cover
registration fees for children’s sports.

5. Assisting tradespeople with the cost of tools, and providing tax incentives to encourage more apprenticeships.

We promised Canadians that we would lower their taxes – and we delivered.

Law and Order

Canada has a reputation as a peaceful and law-abiding nation. A country where people can walk the streets of their community at night with no fear of becoming a statistic.

But lately, this hard-won reputation is under attack as a result of a number of high-profile criminal cases involving guns, gangs and crime.

At the same time, Canada is also facing external threats to our security as the menace of terrorism has drawn closer to our borders.

We recently saw the arrest of 17 individuals on terror-related charges. Allegations have surfaced of plans to attack major cities, such as Toronto and Ottawa, and to cause significant damage and large numbers of casualties.

Clearly, the time has come for action. And our Government has taken it.

To protect the Canadian way of life, we have introduced legislation to:

1. Lengthen and toughen sentences to keep violent criminals and repeat offenders off our streets.

2. Ban house arrest for serious offenders, and make them serve in prison.

3. Crack down on street racing – a reckless crime that all too often kills.

4. Protect our health against adult sexual predators by raising the age of consent from 14 to 16.

5. Scrap the wasteful gun registry to target resources on effective crime measures.

6. Provide more police to tackle crime, and make our streets safer.

Child Care

We are also keeping our promise to support families. We believe that strong communities – cities, towns, and rural areas – are built by strong families.

Our Government recognizes this. We also recognize that each family is unique and parents must be able to make decisions that best meet the needs of their children, particularly in the area of child care.

Our Universal Child Care Plan addresses this situation. It provides parents with direct financial support to allow them to make the child care choices that are right for their needs.

Beginning in 2007, our Government will provide up to $250 million to support the creation of 25,000 new daycare spaces annually.

Our Government promised to provide more child care choice for parents – and we delivered.

Health Care

Canadians want and deserve a health care system that is second to none in the world.

The challenge is that, too often, many find themselves waiting for critical procedures in distress, pain, discomfort and at risk to their health.

We made a commitment to improve the quality of health care in this country, and we will honour that commitment to Canadians.

As we move forward, we will continue to engage the provinces and territories to establish a Patient Time Guarantee to ensure that all Canadians receive medically necessary treatment within a waiting period that doesn’t pose a risk to their health or well-being.

Our Government committed to deal with the issues of health care – and we are progressing on the issue.

Farming in Canada

Our farmers feed Canadians and the world, and in doing so provide a strong economic foundation for our rural communities.

Canadian Agri-food products are known and respected throughout Canada and the world.

Over the past years, Canadian farmers have shown their continued resilience in facing challenges such as animal disease, bad weather and difficult marketing conditions, which have impaired their ability to make a decent livelihood from agriculture.

Canada’s New Government has consulted with our farmers and our partners. We listened, and we have acted.

We are addressing short-term need, but with an eye to long-term stability.

Budget 2006 – Investing in Agriculture

Canada’s New Government is investing $1.5 billion in our farmers in the current fiscal year, through programs announced in the May 2 Budget.

This financial boost triples the original commitment of $500 million to the agricultural sector.

The Government of Canada is moving forward on a Budget 2006 commitment to improve cash advance programs for farmers.

And on May 18, we announced an Enhanced Spring Credit Advance Program would be implemented for 2006.

The Future of Agriculture - Farmers

Canada’s New Government recognizes that our farmers have continually demonstrated their dedication to feeding Canadians and the world in spite of recent challenges.

While it is important to recognize the challenges facing the sector, there is also an underlying strength in this industry which will support its long-term viability.

Canada’s New Government is committed to helping the industry build on this underlying strength and the ability of farmers to adapt.

Conclusion

I would like to conclude with a statement the Prime Minister made, in May, to the House of Commons, during a take-note debate.

The Prime Minister said, and I quote:

o “This Government is going to stand up for a strong, vibrant farm sector that provides security of income to families dependent on farming, and food security for all other Canadian families.” – end quote.

Canada’s New Government remains committed to the well-being of the Agriculture community.

Because your success is vital to the success of Canada.

Thank you.