It’s time for this NDP government to step up to the plate. Over the last 2 years our area has been hit by devastating tornados which have caused millions of dollars in property damage, several personal injuries and tremendous crop damage. The first issue is the lack of an appropriate warning system. Last year after the Gull Lake tornado, the government announced it was now a priority to work on a warning system for Manitobans. This year, after the Whiteshell tornado, the government announced that it was intending to meet with government officials to discuss a warning system. One year has passed since the Gull Lake tornado, and not even a meeting had taken place! Not a thing was done to move to an appropriate system. Next, Steve Ashton, the NDP Minister responsible, announced that unless the Federal government would come up with $600 Million, nothing could be done! Excuse me! Alberta now has a warning system – Manitoba does not! I say step up to the plate, and do something – don’t stand around pointing fingers at someone else with your hand out waiting for money! Next, the Minister went on record by saying that an appropriate system would transmit messages about a potential tornado through the internet, through cell phones and Blackberrys. I challenge anyone to develop an effective warning system like that. There is no cell phone service or internet service in Pinawa, Whitemouth, Rennie, Seven Sisters, or anywhere in the North Whiteshell. I say lets get this area up to speed with the rest of the Province and ensure that they have access to the internet and cell phone service. Any message warning residents and cottage owners of the tornado using cell phones or the internet would not have worked because they don’t have that service.

The second issue is crop damage. I wrote the Minister of Agriculture well over a week ago about possible assistance for the farmers in North Eastern Manitoba who have been devastated by crop damage due to the excessive rains. Many farmers will have a total crop failure and cannot sustain this loss. Some farmers have crop insurance, but crop insurance barely covers the cost of the inputs for the crop – the seed, the fertilizer, sprays and fuel required to plant the crop! Once the insurance is paid out, farmers are still left with their mortgage payments, taxes, and an inability to feed their families. Some farmers do not have crop insurance because they cannot afford the premium, and this year they may be forced out of the farming business. Cottage owners who suffered damage to their cottages normally have replacement insurance – in other words, the insurance company will completely replace their cottage if destroyed or completely repair their cottage if damaged, and it will cost the cottage owner only a small deductible. Farmers who suffer crop damage are unique in the sense that they cannot purchase crop insurance to fully replace their crop – they can only purchase insurance to cover part of their input costs – there is no insurance to cover the actual loss of the crop – the profit that is necessary to pay their other expenses.

2007 is unique for North Eastern Manitoba farmers – many of them will lose their entire crop and as a result, a unique compensation package is necessary to keep them in business. I demand that this government step up to the plate and provide compensation. If they don’t, many farmers will be forced out of business. I have yet to hear from the Minister.