The federal government is asking Parliament to approve an additional $43 million in spending for Agriculture Canada this fiscal year, bringing projected spending to $3.68 billion.New spending proposals have been tabled in the House of Commons for the fiscal year that started April 1.Supplementary spending projections can be reviewed by the Commons agriculture committee but typically are approved with little or no debate.For Agriculture Canada, the new proposed budget includes an additional $24 million for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to fund food safety and traceability programs.The Canadian Grain Commission also will receive $26 million, announced earlier by Ottawa, to cover a deficit run by the commission because fee-for-service charges have been frozen for more than a decade. The CGC needs an annual federal subsidy to cover the deficit.Government efforts to amend the Canada Grain Act to change Canadian Grain Commission governance rules as well as update its funding base have been unsuccessful and face fierce criticism from opposition MPs.Meanwhile, the government is proposing to reduce transfers to Health Canada from Agriculture Canada by almost $10 million, money that had been earmarked for health promotion and regulatory action aimed at ensuring healthier foods in the marketplace.However, because Agriculture Canada projects that spending on business risk management programs will be significantly lower this year, overall departmental spending still is projected to be hundreds of millions of dollars lower in this fiscal year than in 2009-10.
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