A coalition of prairie farm groups wants the federal party leaders to keep their MPs from campaigning in this fall’s Canadian Wheat Board elections.
The coalition sent a letter last week to the four leaders asking them to sign and return a pledge stating the following:
“I will recommend to all MPs in my caucus that they not use taxpayer money to campaign or contribute to any campaigns in upcoming CWB director elections.”
The farm groups involved are the National Farmers Union, Friends of the CWB and Real Voice for Choice.
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Letters were sent to Conservative leader Stephen Harper, Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff, New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton and Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe.
Larry Bohdanovich, a farmer from Grandview, Man., and spokesperson for Real Voice for Choice, said the 2010 CWB election is seven months away but it’s important to make the issue public before farmers get into their busy season.
“There’s a certain window of awareness we’re trying to take advantage of.”
In the letter to the leaders, the farm groups say five Conservative MPs used taxpayer funds to send out information supporting specific candidates in the 2008 CWB elections.
Near the end of the 2008 election period, at least 9,000 letters were sent to farmer voters on the MPs’ office stationery, with all costs paid by taxpayers. The letters offered detailed descriptions of how to vote for each MP’s favoured candidate.
In a March 19, 2009, letter to former NFU president Stewart Wells, an official with the RCMP in Regina confirmed that the MPs’ letters constituted campaigning.
“I’m not saying it was illegal but it was inappropriate,” said Bohdan-ovich, adding MPs should not try to influence voters in any election.
He expects a “mixed response” to the letter, with the opposition Liberals, New Democrats and Bloc signing and returning the pledge and the governing Conservatives ignoring it.
“There’s going to be two clearly opposing positions and it won’t be surprising to see this bear that out,” he said. “But it’s important to get them on the record.”
