Liberal MP says grain sales need scrutiny
Someone needs to follow this right from the start so farmers know where they stand
LIBERAL MP RALPH GOODALE
Liberal MP Ralph Goodale wants someone to monitor the effect of an open market for Prairie grain sales but he doesn’t trust the federal government to do it.
Goodale has proposed hiring the University of Saskatchewan or another independent institution to create a monitoring agency to track and report grain marketing in Western Canada once the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly on wheat and barley sales is gone.
“Rather than people washing their hands and saying ‘That was that,’ someone needs to follow this right from the start so farmers know where they stand,” Goodale said. “The government says everything will be just hunky-dory, but I think it is important to test that thesis.”
The federal government passed legislation just before Christmas that eliminates the monopoly that required all farmers in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta to sell their wheat and barley through the Canadian Wheat Board. With passage of the bill the farmer-elected directors on the CWB were replaced with government appointees, and farmers can now forward contract grain sales with the grain company of their choice. The actual monopoly will be lifted in August when sales to grain companies other than the CWB can go forward.
That legislation is the subject of a court case, however. A federal judge ruled in December that Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz violated the spirit of the Canadian Wheat Board Act by introducing the bill without consulting the board of directors or holding a vote among farmers.
The ruling did not impact the bill itself, but was instead a legal declaration. However, the former directors of the CWB are seeking an injunction to prevent the bill from being implemented until the courts decide whether the legislation is valid
They will be in court Jan. 17 to argue their case. Meanwhile Ritz is appealing the decision.
Goodale said, however, it appears the monopoly is done and farmers deserve some information about the impact. Among the questions he says need to be answered are whether farmers receive more or less for their grain on an open market, what services and costs are borne by producerowned grain terminals and short-line rail operators and what options farmers have to challenge grain companies or rail companies over services and costs.