A member of Parliament who falsely accused the Canadian Wheat Board of illegally trading with Iraq is now parliamentary secretary to the minister responsible for the CWB.
David Anderson, a long-time critic of the board and single desk marketing, made the accusation in the House of Commons in May 2005.
He said the board had made an illegal $23 million sale to Iraq through one of its accredited exporters, under the United Nations oil-for-food program.
The board hotly denied the charge, a position that was later upheld by a UN investigation of the oil-for-food program.
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Despite repeated calls from the board to retract and apologize for the false accusation, Anderson has never done either. Nor did he ever repeat the accusation outside the House, where he was protected from legal action.
Now, as parliamentary secretary to agriculture minister Chuck Strahl, the MP from Cypress Hills-Grassland will be the minister’s point man on CWB issues.
CWB chair Ken Ritter was reluctant to discuss the board’s past dealings with Anderson, saying the agency’s priority is to develop a good working relationship with both him and the minister.
Asked if the board still believes a retraction and apology is in order, he replied, “I suppose we do.”
But he added he doesn’t want to belabour those kinds of issues at this time.
“It’s a new government and it’s an opportunity for a new, fresh start,” he said, adding he assumes Anderson will approach his new role with seriousness and professionalism.
“I’m going to wait and see how Mr. Anderson wants to work with us, speak with us and interact with us,” he said. “I hope a good, constructive, solid engagement can occur with him as well as the minister.”
As for Strahl, Ritter said everything he has heard has been positive in terms of him being reasonable, thoughtful, a quick learner and well respected by his fellow parliamentarians.
Aside from the Iraq issue, Anderson has often been at odds with the board and its senior officials, strongly advocating an end to the agency’s single desk marketing powers and the introduction of an open market for wheat and barley.
For example, Anderson posted a long list of questions and answers about the CWB on his website, the thrust of which was that the board provides no real benefit to farmers and should become a voluntary marketing agency.
The board responded by listing the same questions on its own website and providing what it described as “accurate answers” that were the opposite of Anderson’s.
Anderson was also involved in a heated exchange with CWB chief executive officer Adrian Measner at a meeting of the Commons agriculture committee in November, shortly before the Liberal government fell, arguing over a number of issues including the degree of support among farmers for the board and CWB lobbying efforts.
Anderson’s appointment was well-received by the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association, which shares his desire for an end to the single desk.
“It’s great news,” said association president Cherilyn Jolly-Nagel, adding Anderson is a farmer who understands the issues and is determined to deal with the CWB issue.
“I see him as a visionary who wants what’s best for the industry,” she said, which means eliminating the single desk and then restructuring the board to be an effective marketing tool without single desk powers.
Ritter said he hopes that being in government may soften the views of prairie Conservative MPs who have been harshly critical of the board’s role as single desk seller while in opposition.
“The issues tend to be far more complex than the campaign or coffee shop rhetoric that builds up around them,” he said.
“With a full set of information, people often have a different perception.”
