I suspect most Canadian citizens have experienced some sense of relief from the impending resignation of Prime Minister Trudeau, hopefully soon. I expect many folks in the Alberta agriculture industry are particularly relieved as they have been on the frontline of many anti-agriculture-related initiatives by a long-hostile federal Liberal government. That sense of relief by the ag industry is somewhat similar to when the UCP defeated the Alberta NDP government. In both instances, it was preceded by ag organizations who, guided by polling numbers, had decided to disengage from any further consultations with the Alberta NDP and federal Liberal governments and just wait them out until they were defeated or voted out. I suspect that, in both cases, neither government really cared if they consulted with producer organizations because they viewed the ag community as political opponents.
In the case of the past Alberta NDP government, their disastrous handling of the farmworker rights issue and wilfully ignoring producer organizations in favour of union and city party supporters was the early tipping point from which the NDP never recovered. To be fair, after their electoral defeat, the Alberta NDP did send out missionaries to try and discover the existence of the ag industry. Surprisingly, that mission saw them assemble some actual realistic NDP ag policy. With the present intense urban focus and elitist leadership of the Alberta NDP, there is no danger of any realistic NDP agriculture policies coming forth anytime soon.
For the federal Liberal government, their obstinate refusal to exempt grain drying and heating of production facilities from the carbon tax was an early tipping point that their fixation on climate change ideology would be their priority. Subsequent anti-agriculture government bills and the complete emasculation of the venerable federal Department of Agriculture were clearly indicative that the federal Environment Department was deciding the fate of federal agriculture policy. The federal nitrogen emissions reduction policy aspiration was perhaps the final straw. That saw most ag organizations become utterly disillusioned with so-called federal government after the fact consultations.
What sealed the fate of Liberal intentions towards realistic ag policy was the disclosure by the federal auditor-general department that Agriculture Canada had spent over $200 million taxpayer dollars on climate-related ag research projects. The disclosure indicated that the department had “no strategy to meet its expected contributions to reductions of greenhouse gas emissions.” That expenditure showed more than 25% of the department’s budget was spent on environmental and climate change research whims, incentives and even contests. That expenditure was seemingly at the expense of production ag research, which was the traditional mandate of the department.
At the time, A senior department official indicated there was no point in production research if climate change couldn’t be stopped by 2030. It would seem a new Conservative Minister of Agriculture will have a massive cleanup job to return some sanity to Agriculture Canada – good luck with that.
One of the side benefits of the prorogation of parliament is that many government bills, in effect, die on the order list of both the Commons and the Senate. This would include such notorious bills as Bill 282, preventing supply management from being discussed during trade negotiations. Bill 355 (also known as the Jann Arden Act) would prohibit transporting horses by air for feeding and processing. Bill 293 which would single out the closure of food animal production and processing during a pandemic. Bill 275, which would ban the use of Roundup. Prorogation also means two positive ag-related bills also die, that being Bill 234, which would have exempted the carbon tax on grain drying and Bill 275, which would criminalized trespassing on intensive livestock operations by animal rights activists.
However, it’s not over yet; the federal Liberal government is still in business, perhaps until June if an election is called. Although they have said they would defeat the Liberal government at the next opportunity, the NDP could prop up the despised Liberal government until next October even if Trudeau was replaced as Liberal leader. So, there is more damage that they could do as long as they cling to power.
Federal Liberal Greenpeace Environment Minister, the loathsome anti-Alberta zealot Steven Guilbeault, has already stated that he will be applying and enforcing climate change-related regulations until the bitter end. That would include an orgy of climate change spending and collecting the hated carbon tax at every opportunity. The nightmare is not yet over.
Will Verboven is an ag opinion writer.
