Six in, three out

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Published: July 4, 2002

HALIFAX – Alberta agriculture minister Shirley McClellan stood in the

historic Red Chamber of the Nova Scotia legislature, an early cradle of

Canadian responsible government, and said she did it for her farmers.

McClellan was one of six provincial ministers to join the federal

government June 27 in signing the legal text of a new long-term

agriculture policy for Canada.

It commits Ottawa to spending $5.2 billion over six years, with the

potential for an additional $3 billion from the provinces. It will lead

Read Also

thumb emoji

Supreme Court gives thumbs-up emoji case the thumbs down

Saskatchewan farmer wanted to appeal the court decision that a thumbs-up emoji served as a signature to a grain delivery contract.

to the most radical overhaul of Canadian farm programs in a generation.

As she spoke, dissident ministers Clay Serby of Saskatchewan and Rosann

Wowchuk of Manitoba sat in the audience rather than at the table,

refusing to sign. Quebec minister Maxime Arseneau was nowhere to be

seen.

But McClellan made no apologies for breaking ranks with her fellow

prairie ministers.

It was 40 C the previous day in Lloydminster, she said, and farmers in

much of the province have had virtually no rain. “They need us, as a

province, to get on with negotiations with our partners on a safety

net.”

Federal minister Lyle Vanclief predicted that the dissident provinces

would change their minds and sign on to this “bold course.”

The most profound disagreement came from Saskatchewan and Manitoba,

which complained that federal funding promises are too low to put the

industry on a solid footing. Both also objected that federal promises

of $1.2 billion in “transition” funding over two years, while not

mentioned in the Halifax agreement, is too little and should not

require provincial co-funding.

“I wasn’t comfortable signing because I wasn’t comfortable not knowing

what financial obligations my province has,” Serby said in an

interview. “When you look at the amount of money that has gone into

this package, we are setting ourselves up for failure before we even

start.”

The agreement in principle calls for a five-year policy supporting a

stronger safety net, environmental stewardship, food safety, research

and innovation and “renewal,” which ranges from educating farmers to

helping them leave the land.

Ottawa has promised $1.1 billion in annual safety net funding for at

least five years, with provinces expected to add close to $800 million

more. Ottawa and the provinces will spend the next months negotiating

changes to crop insurance, the Net Income Stabilization Account program

and a replacement for the much-maligned Canadian Farm Income Program,

as well as agreements on the other “pillars.”

Canadian Federation of Agriculture president and Manitoba hog and

turkey producer Bob Friesen welcomed the deal after earlier urging

ministers not to “close any doors” in potential program design.

“The agreement had to be worded in such a manner as to keep all options

open until we can determine with government what works and what

doesn’t,” he said. “We believe this agreement is a step in the right

direction in allowing this to happen.”

Still, the signing ceremony was a bittersweet moment for Vanclief, who

before the conference said he was confident all 10 provinces and three

territories would sign.

As well as three provinces that refused to sign, Prince Edward Island,

Yukon and Northwest Territories offered a letter of intent to sign

later if their governments agree once a thorough review has been done.

Quebec, whose Parti Quebecois government faces an election within a

year, considered the federal conditions too rigid and the federal funds

too paltry to justify changing Quebec programs. Quebec spends close to

$3 for every federal dollar sent to the province.

explore

Stories from our other publications