He has been a senator for barely more than a month, but already Saskatchewan farmer Jack Wiebe has been handed a crucial job by the Liberal government.
When, or if, the House of Commons sends grain transportation reform legislation to the Senate sometime in June, it will be Wiebe’s job to get it into law before the Senate adjourns for the summer.
“At this point, I don’t think that will be a problem,” he said in a May 15 interview.
“My sense is there is agreement among senators that it is vital to get this in place by summer. Of course, I’m new at this. What doesn’t look like a problem today may become one tomorrow.”
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Wiebe said if more time is needed, he will try to persuade senators to delay their summer vacation.
“Our feeling in the Senate is that if it gets to us in late June and it requires us to sit into July to complete it, we will sit into July.”
Right now, the Senate is unofficially expecting to adjourn before the end of June, a week or so after the Commons adjourns June 16 or 23.
Several political realities could intervene to complicate Wiebe’s life.
- Opposition Conservatives, and the odd renegade Liberal, could decide to oppose the bill because they think it moves too timidly toward commercializing the grain transportation system.
“We don’t want to obstruct, but we have to look closely at this bill when we get it to see if there are flaws,” said Saskatchewan Conservative senator Len Gustafson, chair of the agriculture committee where the legislation may end up.
- Critics who think the bill goes too far or not far enough may demand a hearing at the Senate committee, delaying the process longer than senators want to sit.
- Senators may be less than co-operative with the government timetable because they are unhappy to have major legislation sent to them at the last moment with instructions not to change it.
“It’s always been a problem of the House sending bills to us late and it creates some resentment,” said Gustafson. “They should have done this long ago.”
However, Liberals expect senators will not want to be responsible for farmers facing higher freight rates Aug. 1 rather than freight reductions.
“I think there will be an inclination to move quickly,” said Wiebe.
The 63-year-old farmer, former Saskatchewan MLA and lieutenant-governor, said he did not know why the government chose a rookie senator to manoeuvre crucial legislation through the system.
“They are putting me to work faster than I expected,” he laughed.
“Maybe it’s because of my farm background. One way to keep me out of trouble is to give me lots of work. Maybe they’ve been talking to my wife.”
