Job 1 for Canada’s new agriculture minister is convincing the country’s farmers that he will be their champion to Ottawa.
“That has been the approach I’ve always taken, to bring constituents’ views here,” Bob Speller said in a Dec. 17 interview in his Ottawa office.
“I don’t mince words. The best way to resolve things is to make sure that everyone’s view is out on the table.”
Job 2 will be listening to their complaints about the agricultural policy framework and trying to fix it.
“It’s a complicated file and first and foremost, we need to get Saskatchewan to sign on and then we move on with it,” said Speller.
Read Also
Bird repellent gets emergency approval for sunflowers
Bird repellent gets emergency approval for sunflowers
“The prime minister gave a commitment to the Canadian Federation of Agriculture that he knew they had concerns and he would make sure the new minister of agriculture looked at them. I plan to do exactly that.”
Speller said a review of the program has been promised and he said farmers must realize that provinces are partners in the APF and also must agree to changes.
“What I’m going to have to do is work with the provinces because they play an important role, too, to make sure we’re all working in the same direction,” said Speller.
The 47-year-old, 15-year parliamentary veteran was named Canada’s 29th federal agriculture minister Dec. 12 in an overhaul of the cabinet by incoming prime minister Paul Martin.
Speller has been welcomed by most farm leaders whose relationship with former minister Lyle Vanclief was strained. Many farm leaders accused the former minister and his senior bureaucrats of not listening to them about policy needs, despite extensive rounds of consultations organized by the department.
The new minister said this is a problem he can tackle without making major policy decisions or spending money.
“Farmers are not unreasonable,” he said. “What they want is to have access and to get their point across and I want to work harder in making sure they have that access and that in fact they are listened to.”
Speller said he revels in his reputation as a listener: “It will go a long way to allaying farmers’ fears that somehow there’s a body up there that makes decisions on their behalf.”
He worries about the early high expectations that farmers have for the new minister.
“I’m worried they are a little bit higher than Paul Martin’s are right now,” he said with a laugh.
“It is a high bar. I like to set the bar high. It is a challenge and the groups I have talked to want to know there is someone up there speaking on their behalf. They have that now. They don’t expect me to magically change things overnight. They want to make sure they are heard.”
Speller, a southern Ontario MP, said trade issues will be a big part of his job.
He has been parliamentary secretary to the trade minister in the past and has been a member of a Canada-U.S. association of elected politicians.
He is a member of cabinet committees on domestic affairs, global affairs and Canada-U.S. relations.
