Ed Komarnicki, MP, (Souris-Moose Mountain), says the opposition parties are playing politics with the Canadian Wheat Board and disseminating all kinds of misinformation. That said, the future and role of the Canadian Wheat Board and what effect changes will have on western Canadian farmers is a very important issue that deserves the input and debate of all western Canadian farmers.

“We need to be listening” said Komarnicki “to what farmers are saying and then act accordingly. Change of any kind is not always easy. We should not however be afraid to look at options for change that are available and that would be beneficial to farmers.

“Obviously, we do not want to take steps that will not be helpful to farmers. We need to weigh the pros and cons and then decide what course of action should be taken.

“It goes without saying that we need to be listening to what farmers have to say. The misinformation happens in many ways.”

The opposition have said that the Minister of Agriculture has placed a ‘gag’ order on the Canadian Wheat Board Directors and others. That is simply not so, says Komarnicki. “Anyone, including Board members, are free to say what they want. What the Order-in-Council does say however, is that the Canadian Wheat Board shall not expend funds advocating the retention of its monopoly powers while the Minister is considering other options. To do otherwise would be obviously undercutting the Minister.

The Minister has said he wants to provide greater freedom of marketing choice for western Canadian grain farmers, to allow them to maximize their returns and to preserve a strong, voluntary and viable Canadian Wheat Board. That’s what he would like but as the Minister said during Question Period, “there have been discussions but right now there is nothing to even have a plebiscite about.” Minister Strahl went on to say that, “farmers should be debating the future of the Canada Wheat Board and I’m always interested in hearing from farmers”.

“That is where the advice should come from” said Komarnicki.

“On the issue of Director elections, the Minister noted that there is no definitive list of producers kept by the Canadian Wheat Board or the Government of Canada for the purposes of Director elections. It turns out that 16,169 of the 44,578 listed producers made no deliveries in the past two crop years.

“The question is” said Komarnicki, “whether those who make no deliveries should have an effect on the issues faced by those who do make deliveries. I think we should determine voter eligibility on some reasonable and fair basis, and certainly if you have not delivered in the past two years you shouldn’t be automatically entitled to vote.

“Even so, the Minister proposed that those who did not make deliveries could sign a statutory declaration and get to vote nonetheless. The only requirement is that during the past two crop years the individual was an actual producer of wheat, oats, barley, rye, flaxseed, canola or rapeseed on land within an electoral district. Voting rights are also to be extended to those who are landlords, vendors, or mortgagee and share in one or more of the above-noted crops.

“This seems to have some reason to it” said Komarnicki “and it is these farmers that should be voting on issues effecting the Wheat Board.”

“There are also other issues for consideration such as whether there should be a removal of buyback provisions, allowance for western based ‘value added’ and changing the Board’s power to grant export licenses. In the end it really comes down to managing change in a prudent fashion that will ensure maximum returns to farmers” said Komarnicki.