As a public service, we begin this week with highlights from last week’s House of Commons agriculture committee.
As a refresher for readers not riveted by daily Parliament Hill debates, the agriculture committee is where 12 MPs from all parties gather a couple of times a week to set aside the partisan grandstanding of the Commons Question Period to work together to advance farm interests.
Traditionally, the agriculture committee brags that it is the least partisan of House committees, setting aside politics for the good of farmers.
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So we go back to last week.
Highlight one: on Nov. 17 by coincidence or design, committee chair Conservative Larry Miller was absent, which brought Liberal Mark Eyking into the chair without a vote except in a tie.
It gave the Conservatives a majority and allowed them to defeat a pre-arranged vote on a Liberal motion to study prison farm closures. Liberal Wayne Easter saw dirty tricks.
“We’ve seen this constantly from this government where when they want to play games, the usual chair never shows up,” he complained. “It’s one of the reasons why we have no trust in either the chair or the committee …”
Highlight two: on Nov. 19, provoked by a mischievous attempt by Alberta Conservative Blake Richards to read into the record a newspaper commentary from New Democrat Alex Atamanenko’s British Columbia riding criticizing him for supporting the gun registry, mild-mannered Atamanenko took offense. “Blake, I’ve had it with you and I’ve had it with that crap and the gun registry has nothing to do with agriculture.”
Saskatchewan Conservative Randy Hoback piled on. “You come and talk to my farmers that way Alex … They’ll kick you out of the hall.”
“You go to hell,” said Atamanenko before threatening to leave the room.
Highlight three: on Nov. 19 when a new Liberal was sworn in just before a vote, Hoback accused Easter of breaking an agreement that they both would leave early and cancel out the other’s vote.
“If I hadn’t run into (Sukh) Dhaliwal in the elevator, it would have created an unfair balance on the committee. I think that is unethical.”
Miller said he should take it up with the Liberal MP.
These are signs of a committee that in some ways has lost its way.
Opposition MPs are frustrated, seeming to see the minority Conservatives as illegitimate.
The Conservatives, partisan to the core, never pass up a chance to slag opposition MPs. The government, regularly facing committee reports that reflect majority opposition anti-Conservative motions, basically ignores committees despite its arguments that MPs should have more relevance in Parliament and committees are where it happens.
It is a recipe for dysfunction. The joke in Ottawa is that Canadians visiting Ottawa should not watch the infantile antics of Question Period.
Visiting farmers hoping to see politics working for them would be well advised to put the agriculture committee on their no-go list as well.
