Post by Mary on Dec 21, 2006 9:04:03 GMT -5
Dion vows he would Roll Back Shakeup At Wheat Board
'Undemocratic'
John Greenwood, Financial Post
Published: Thursday, December 21, 2006
A day after Stephen Harper's Conservatives fired the head of the Canadian Wheat Board for refusing to back government policy, Stephane Dion, leader of the Liberal Party, slammed the move, calling it "undemocratic" and an attempt to bring down a Canadian institution.
Mr. Dion vowed to roll back any changes the Conservatives make if his party wins the next election.
"We will restore what Mr. Harper has destroyed," Mr. Dion said in a telephone interview from Winnipeg, where he was meeting with Wheat Board directors.
The comments come amid growing speculation about a possible federal election in the New Year.
With the Conservatives under attack for their position on climate change and other issues, observers say their controversial handling of the Wheat Board head's dismissal could play into the hands of the Opposition.
Adrian Measner was removed from his job on Tuesday. He had tried to block the government's efforts to take away the Wheat Board's monopoly on grain marketing.
The news was announced by Chuck Strahl, the Agriculture Minister. Conrad Bellehumeur, a spokesman for Mr. Strahl, said the government believes that growers should be able to choose who they sell their grain to "and Mr. Measner did not support that position. Therefore, he was terminated."
Mr. Bellehumeur said the government wants to give Western growers what their counterparts in Eastern Canada have already got, namely the right to choose who they sell their grain to.
Mr. Measner has been vocal about his views. In an interview from his home near Winnipeg on Tuesday, shortly after his firing, he took the opportunity to throw one more barb, saying the government should "stop interfering" and let farmers run the Wheat Board.
He is being replaced by Greg Arason, an industry veteran and former Wheat Board president who came out of retirement to act as the new interim head, until a permanent replacement can be found.
Unlike his predecessor, Mr. Arason refused to offer his opinion on the future direction of the Wheat Board.
"What I will tell you is that I was appointed to focus on the business of marketing the farmers' grain," he said. "My responsibility is to run the business. I think its the responsibility of farmers and the government to determine the direction the Wheat Board should go, not the CEO."
But he said he doesn't believe a wholesale restructuring is in order.
"The system isn't broken, I believe our system works. The Wheat Board does a good job of marketing."
Formed in 1935 in the depths of the Depression, the Wheat Board has sole authority to sell wheat and barley from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and parts of British Columbia.
The idea was that by acting as a single entity in the market it would have more power to set prices and give farmers a better return than they could get on their own.
But in recent years a growing number of farmers have found themselves at odds with the Wheat Board and its monopoly. They argue that with the advent of the Internet and a more efficient global market, they don't need the Wheat Board to sell their grain.
jgreenwood@nationalpost.com
© National Post 2006
'Undemocratic'
John Greenwood, Financial Post
Published: Thursday, December 21, 2006
A day after Stephen Harper's Conservatives fired the head of the Canadian Wheat Board for refusing to back government policy, Stephane Dion, leader of the Liberal Party, slammed the move, calling it "undemocratic" and an attempt to bring down a Canadian institution.
Mr. Dion vowed to roll back any changes the Conservatives make if his party wins the next election.
"We will restore what Mr. Harper has destroyed," Mr. Dion said in a telephone interview from Winnipeg, where he was meeting with Wheat Board directors.
The comments come amid growing speculation about a possible federal election in the New Year.
With the Conservatives under attack for their position on climate change and other issues, observers say their controversial handling of the Wheat Board head's dismissal could play into the hands of the Opposition.
Adrian Measner was removed from his job on Tuesday. He had tried to block the government's efforts to take away the Wheat Board's monopoly on grain marketing.
The news was announced by Chuck Strahl, the Agriculture Minister. Conrad Bellehumeur, a spokesman for Mr. Strahl, said the government believes that growers should be able to choose who they sell their grain to "and Mr. Measner did not support that position. Therefore, he was terminated."
Mr. Bellehumeur said the government wants to give Western growers what their counterparts in Eastern Canada have already got, namely the right to choose who they sell their grain to.
Mr. Measner has been vocal about his views. In an interview from his home near Winnipeg on Tuesday, shortly after his firing, he took the opportunity to throw one more barb, saying the government should "stop interfering" and let farmers run the Wheat Board.
He is being replaced by Greg Arason, an industry veteran and former Wheat Board president who came out of retirement to act as the new interim head, until a permanent replacement can be found.
Unlike his predecessor, Mr. Arason refused to offer his opinion on the future direction of the Wheat Board.
"What I will tell you is that I was appointed to focus on the business of marketing the farmers' grain," he said. "My responsibility is to run the business. I think its the responsibility of farmers and the government to determine the direction the Wheat Board should go, not the CEO."
But he said he doesn't believe a wholesale restructuring is in order.
"The system isn't broken, I believe our system works. The Wheat Board does a good job of marketing."
Formed in 1935 in the depths of the Depression, the Wheat Board has sole authority to sell wheat and barley from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and parts of British Columbia.
The idea was that by acting as a single entity in the market it would have more power to set prices and give farmers a better return than they could get on their own.
But in recent years a growing number of farmers have found themselves at odds with the Wheat Board and its monopoly. They argue that with the advent of the Internet and a more efficient global market, they don't need the Wheat Board to sell their grain.
jgreenwood@nationalpost.com
© National Post 2006