OTTAWA – Cargill Grain executives went before MPs last week to ask for the same kind of grain shipper protection from railways that other prairie players have requested.
“In general, we believe the role of government should be limited, Cargill assistant vice-president Barbara Isman told the Commons transport committee studying rail deregulation. “We believe the marketplace should exert discipline rather than government regulation.”
But she added in the absence of competition, “governments have a role.”
Along with Tom Cascica, senior manager for land transport, she argued that on the Prairies, there is little effective transportation competition available to grain shippers.
Read Also
Agriculture ministers agree to AgriStability changes
federal government proposed several months ago to increase the compensation rate from 80 to 90 per cent and double the maximum payment from $3 million to $6 million
So, like other prairie witnesses appearing before the committee, Cargill joined the chorus demanding that parts of the proposed Canada Transportation Act be amended or dropped to give shippers more ability to object to railway pricing or service performance.
Must prove case
A requirement that shippers must be able to demonstrate that they would suffer “significant prejudice” without relief from a particular rail practice would make it difficult to win a case at the Canadian Transport Agency, said Cascica. It should be dropped.
Likewise, words “fair and reasonable” and “frivolous and vexatious” in the legislation would need clarification and definition before shippers would feel comfortable that they could receive fair treatment before the CTA, he said.
Avoid need for correcting
When committee chair and Liberal MP Stan Keyes wondered if Cargill would be satisfied with a commitment that the transport committee would review the act after two years to see if the dire predictions were true, Cascica said it would be better to “do it right the first time” than to pass vague legislation which would leave the grain industry uncertain.
When Manitoba Liberal Marlene Cowling asked if the transition of the grain industry from regulation and subsidy to a more open market should be watched by some overseer body, Cascica said he would prefer the market operate without another layer of bureaucracy.
But in the real world, change is creating uncertainty.
“With all the changes we are making, it would be wise to have some review,” he said.
The Cargill executive told MPs that Canadian shippers are better protected from rail abuse than their American counterparts.
However, Canadian shippers on the Prairies have less access to competition between carriers than do Americans, who have better access to water, road and rail carriers, he said.
