CARBERRY, Man. — For once, farm and agriculture issues seem to matter in a federal election.
It’s only a byelection and the issues aren’t front and centre in the main politicking, but the surprise appearance of a leading federal Tory cabinet minister at a small gathering of cattle producers highlighted the fact that at least around here, the farm vote might actually count.
“We held out and held out and we managed to get what we think was the best conceivable deal for livestock producers in Canada,” employment minister Jason Kenney told a regional Manitoba Beef Producers meeting Nov. 15 while discussing the free trade deal with Europe.
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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
“This CETA (Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement) deal with Europe could have been done probably a couple of years ago, but the one big sticking point that we kept holding out on was quota for beef and pork.”
Most of the issues in the local byelection fight are common to politics across Canada — the Senate scandals, oil industry impacts and the overall state of the economy — but the local Conservative candidate has focused on the impact of CETA for the local economy and highlighted the importance of agriculture to Brandon and the region.
“Just about every job, outside of the (armed forces) base of Shilo, depends on the export of grain, livestock and crude oil,” said Larry Maguire, a former provincial Tory MLA and a long-time farm group leader, who is now campaigning for the Brandon-Souris seat.
Federal NDP leader Thomas Mulcair and Liberal leader Justin Trudeau visited Brandon earlier that week and the polls suggest the competition is close, even though it is a longtime Conservative stronghold.
Campaign signs can be seen throughout Brandon and along the highways of the sprawling riding.
The MBP meeting didn’t draw many farmers, with only 30 present when the Tory politicians appeared, but those who attended quizzed Kenney on CETA and challenged him on employment and immigration.
