1. Has the government given further consideration to the requests made by the Alberta farmers' union and the United Farmers of Canada (Saskatchewan section), in their brief presented to the cabinet in August, 1946?

2. If so, what action has been taken with respect to items one, two and three of the above-mentioned brief?

Mr. GARDINER:

I can best answer this orally. As to part 1, a full reply was given later to the brief which was presented in August of last year, and subsequently a committee representing the farm organizations came to Ottawa. There was oral consideration of the request made, and it was agreed

at least if not agreed it was admitted-that an effort had been made to meet the situation which was presented in the brief. Since that time there has been no necessity for further consideration other than the carrying out of the undertaking under the Agricultural Prices Support Act. With respect to part 2 of the question, the explanation I have given covers items one, two ana three of the brief.

Mr. SPEAKER:

Answered.

1. How many weather stations have been established in Canada's northern territories since V-E day?

2. Has any foreign country assisted the Dominion of Canada financially in the setting up of these stations? If so, to what extent?

3. Where are these weather stations located?

4. Under wbat department of government are they operated?

5. How many Canadian personnel are involved in their operation?

Mr. McILRAITH:

1. Have tenders been called for the building of a road into Atlin, British Columbia, from the Alaska highway to the Yukon-British Columbia

border?

2. If so, what are the names of those submitting tenders and what was the price of each tender?

3. To whom was the contract awarded?

1. No.

2. Answered by No. 1.

3. Answered by No. 1.

farm labour

1. Is there an agreement between Canada and the United States with respect to the recruiting of Canadian farm labour for the United States?

2. If so, what is the nature and extent of this agreement ?

revised edition

Questions

3. How many Canadian farm labourers have gone to the United States per province for each year since 4940?

1. Yes.

2. Arrangements were originally made in 1941, following the drawing up of the Hyde Park agreement of April 20 of that year. These arrangements, which provided for the exchange of seasonal agricultural labour and equipment between Canada and the United States, have been continued each succeeding year through an exchange of notes between the respective departments of state.

The purpose of these movements is to facilitate the exchange of workers mainly between adjacent areas of the United States and Canada and to take advantage of labour which may be available due to seasonal variation between the two countries.

Arrangements for these movements are dealt with in Canada under the dominion-provincial farm labour programme. Care is taken to see that workers can be spared from the district in which they are recruited and that they proceed to designated areas when and where their services are required. While many of the workers are recruited from rural border areas, the movements last year included a considerable number of unemployed urban workers

Movements of farm labour arranged under this agreement include:

(a>

Movement of combine units, including necessary crews, from the prairie provinces to the midwestern United States during the summer, and a return movement from the U.S. to assist in harvesting crops in the prairies in the fall;

(b) Movement of tobacco workers from the southern U.S. to Ontario and Quebec;

(c) Movement of Canadian potato harvesters from Quebec and New Brunswick to Maine and from Manitoba to North Dakota.

(d) Movement of workers from Quebec to the New England states for fruit and vegetable picking and processing.

3. Under this agreement the approximate numbers of agricultural workers going to the United States on a seasonal work basis since 1942 are as follows:

N.B. Quebec Prairie Provinces1942

588 600 1001943

- 700 5001944

378 1,500 5501945

300 4,300 2,3501946

400 5,900 3,900