As the only Progressive Conservative elected west of Toronto, Brandon-Souris MP Rick Borotsik has a lot of territory to represent in the new Tory caucus.
But he hopes party leader Jean Charest gives him special responsibility for the issues in an industry near to his heart and key to his riding.
“I just finished off faxing my preferences to the leader for when he names his critics,” said the first-time MP who defeated Liberal Glen McKinnon June 2.
“At the top of my list is agriculture and agricultural products. Agriculture is the backbone of Western Canada, Manitoba and Brandon-Souris.”
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No experience
The former mayor of Brandon said he has no direct involvement in the industry.
“But you cannot live in this part of the country and not recognize the importance of agriculture,” he said from his newly opened constituency office.
“I think agriculture is positioned to take off in the next two or three years and I’d like to be part of it.”
He said in caucus and in the House of Commons, he will push the Tory party and the government to make the Canadian Wheat Board more accountable to farmers than the Liberals are proposing and more “flexible” in marketing than defenders of the export monopoly might like to see.
“I support the board but I do believe the time has come to make it flexible enough to allow farmers the option of how they want to market their grain,” he said.
Review programs
Borotsik also supports a review of the farm safety net program to make sure it is adequately funded and properly designed: “I think it is working well but everything should be open to review.”
His election-night win was both a disappointment and a boost to the party.
It was a disappointment because the Tories had hoped to stage something of a revival in a region of the country where the Conservatives have been strong for four decades. Instead, just one Conservative was elected and many credited the win with his own popularity, rather than the PC platform.
On the other hand, the party was shut out in the West in 1993, so Borotsik’s win was at least a breakthrough.
He said being the only elected western Conservative puts a heavy onus on him to make sure the western position is heard and reflected in a caucus dominated by Atlantic MPs. In caucus, he will have support from western senators.
Charest is expected to announce his caucus critic positions in August.
