Saskatchewan NDP leader Dwain Lingenfelter says the provincial government should roll back crop insurance premium increases for farmers who had flooded acres last year.
However, agriculture minister Bob Bjornerud said he doesn’t think that is possible.
Premiums and coverage levels are based on prices, and forecasts are strong right now, he said.
As well, he said producers and governments have a contract. Producers pay 40 percent of premium costs, while the provincial and federal governments pay 60 percent.
Bjornerud also said farmers just finished receiving cheques from crop insurance and the excess moisture program announced last July.
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federal government proposed several months ago to increase the compensation rate from 80 to 90 per cent and double the maximum payment from $3 million to $6 million
Lingenfelter said it would cost the province only $15 million to help farmers deal with rising input costs.
“The one thing they do have total control over is crop insurance premiums, so it’s something they can do very quickly,” he told reporters.
In the legislature, the two squared off over the issue of how much assistance the government has provided.
The minister said the province has paid out $700 million, including the $360 million excess moisture program it shared with Ottawa.
Lingenfelter said the provincial portion of that is only $12 per acre and the ministry recently turned $54 million back to the general revenue fund.
That money would have paid for all producers’ premiums, he said.
Lingenfelter said a farmer with 3,000 acres will see a $5,000 premium increase.
“At a time when the bins are empty because they didn’t get any crop last year, it’s not difficult to understand why many farmers are asking for this kind of help.”
Crop insurance has increased the unseeded acreage benefit this year from $50 to $70 per flooded acre. The corporation has said it won’t include unseeded acres in seeding intensity calculations so farmers aren’t penalized for not having a crop last year.
Bjornerud said premiums are increasing because coverage is going up, which means prices are also rising. No farmershave complained to him about that, he added.
