Mr. David A. Croll (Spadina):

Mr. Speaker, I would ask the Minister of Agriculture to take over this bill standing in my name on the order paper.

Right Hon. J. G. Gardiner (Minister of Agriculture) moved

the first reading of Bill No. 307 (from the Senate), to amend the Canada Dairy Products Act.

Motion agreed to and bill read the first time.

1. How many men are employed at deep-sea fishing in Nova Scotia, in (a) trawlers or seine liners; (b) inshore fishing?

2. What is the value of (a) catch of 1 (a); (b) catch of 1 (b); (c) equipment in 1 (a); (d) equipment in 1 (b)?

Mr. MacNaught:

*1. (a) 4,116 (1); (b) 11,607.

*2. (a) $7,000,000 (2); (b) $14,400,000;

(c) $7,594,640 (3); (d) $3,063,780 (4).

^Information based on statistics for calendar year 1950.

Notes

in inshore operations. It is not possible therefore to give an exact figure of the number of vessels or men solely engaged in either offshore or inshore operations during a year.

(2) Estimate.

(3) Including vessels of from 10 to 20 gross tons that participate in offshore operations on a part-time basis. Value of fishing gear is not included.

(4) Excluding vessels of from 10 to 20 tons (gross) which engage part-time in offshore operations. Value of fishing gear is not included.

1. How many farm improvement loans have been made in each of the provinces under the Farm Improvement Loans Act of 1944, since April 1, 1951?

2. What has been the total amount of such loans for each province for the same period?

3. How many loans have been made in 1952 to date, in each province?

4. What is the total amount of such loans in each province?

5. Through what banks were loans financed in Newfoundland in 1952?

6. For what purposes have loans been made in Newfoundland?

7. In what sections of Newfoundland have loans been made?

Mr. Sinclair:

1 and 2. From April, 1951, to April 30, 1952, both dates inclusive, loans under the Farm Improvement Loans Act, 1944, have been made in the number and amounts as follows:

Number of Amount of

Loans Loans

British Columbia . ... 2,171 $ 2,278,622.35Alberta ... 24,009 27,354,487.05Saskatchewan .... ... 29,650 35,099,804.20Manitoba ... 11,921 13,211,625.63Ontario ... 12,866 13,918,497.59Quebec .. . 6,060 6,908,248.35New Brunswick .. ... 762 813,463.51Nova Scotia ... 768 703,006.42Prince Edward Island 1,465 1,350,554.50Newfoundland ... ... 9 9,951.50

(1) This figure includes men on vessels of from 10 to 20 gross tons. A great number of these vessels fish offshore for certain periods of the year, at other times they are engaged

89,681 $101,648,261.15

3 and 4. From January 1, 1952, to April 30, 1952, both dates inclusive, loans under the

Questions

Farm Improvement Loans Act, 1944, have been made in number and amounts as follows:

Number of Amount of

Loans Loans

British Columbia . ... 593 $ 631,883.78Alberta . .. 6,490 7,352,474.36Saskatchewan .... . . . 8,092 9,162,485.91Manitoba . .. 3,064 3,177,689.40Ontario . .. 3,153 3,803,317.62Quebec ... 1,125 1,305,196.15New Brunswick .. . . . 160 166,354.97Nova Scotia .. . 163 166,834.25Prince Edward Island 319 310,930.19Newfoundland ... . . . 6 7,539.00Total . . . 23,525 $26,084,705.635. The Bank of Nova Scotia.6. The purposes for which loans were made in Newfoundland were to finance the purchase of farm implements and livestock and the construction, repair or alteration of farm buildings.7. Loans have been made in Newfoundland in those sections centring at Bay Roberts, Channel, Corner Brook, Springdale and St. John's.

1. On what day of the month are old age security cheques put in the mail?

2. Has consideration been given to mailing these cheques in time so that they will be received a few days in advance of the end of the month?

3. If so, what is the result of such consideration?

1. On the last business day of the month.

2. Yes.

3. The decision to delay delivery of old age security cheques until the first few days of the month following the month the payment purports to cover was determined by the following considerations:

(a) Old age security cheques are issued by the same offices and with the same equipment as are used for family allowances payments and sufficient time is not available after the closing-off of the family allowances cheque-run to permit the old age security cheques to be prepared and dispatched to the post offices in time for delivery to the payees several days before the close of the month. The alternatives would be (a) to advance the mailing date of family allowances cheques; or (b) to increase staffs and equipment so as to enable the preparation and delivery of the cheques by, say, the 28th of the month.

(b) The banks are heavily engaged during the last few days of the month in handling

(Mr. Sinclair.]

government cheques in payment of salaries and wages of civil servants, war pensions, veterans' allowances, assigned pay of members of the armed forces, superannuation, and many other month-end payments, and it was accordingly felt that to add a further 650,000 cheques to this load would place an unreasonable burden on the banks.

(c) The addition of a further 650,000 cheques to the month-end issue would overburden the cheque adjustment branch of the Department of Finance, which is already heavily taxed in clearing the existing month-end issues mentioned in (b).