Only farmers, not government, can change the marketing mandate of the Canadian Wheat Board, the board says in a submission to a regulatory review of the federal government’s plans to end single desk marketing of barley Aug. 1.
The board said the government is violating Section 47.1 of the CWB Act, passed in 1998, which defines the process for changing the board’s marketing mandate, including consultations with the CWB and a vote by producers.
The board said neither of those conditions has been properly met.
“It appears the 1998 amendments were clearly intended to prevent the alteration of the mandate by the government of the day acting on its own,” the board said.
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It asked the government to take five specific steps before proceeding with the proposed regulatory changes:
- Defer changes until Aug. 1, 2008.
- Provide a legal analysis supporting the view that change can be made by regulation rather than legislation.
- Obtain a court ruling on the validity of the proposed regulatory changes.
- Meet with the CWB to determine how to limit commercial harm to farmers and industry from the change.
- Provide compensation for losses arising from the government’s actions.
The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association said in its submission the proposed change will result in improved returns and greater management flexibility for farmers, access to new markets and more opportunity for local processing.
It urged the government to bring in the changes as early as June 4, in order to pre-empt any legal challenge. It also said the government should have a back-up plan, such as ordering the board to issue export licences to farmers and grain companies who want one.
The deadline for comments on the proposed regulatory changes as published in the Canada Gazette was May 21. More than 90 individuals, organizations and companies had made submissions as of May 17.
Agriculture Canada spokesperson Paul Martin said the comments haven’t provided any surprises.
“We’ve pretty much seen the full range of views, from those who are strongly favourable to those who are strongly unfavourable,” he said. “It’s about what you’d expect.”
