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December 5, 2013
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SERVING MANITOBA FARMERS SINCE 1925 | Vol. 71, No. 49
CWB facility purchase raises concerns Some worry farmers are funding privatizing the government’s company By Allan Dawson
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AMM delegates want to take province to court
co-operator staff
Sixty per cent of delegates at November convention want AMM to pursue a legal challenge
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By Lorraine Stevenson
WB Ltd. is buying handling facilities, but some farmers are wondering who’s paying the bill. CWB announced last week that it would purchase Mission Terminal, Les Élévateurs des Trois-Rivières and Services Maritimes Laviolette for an undisclosed amount. Some have concerns that the former Canadian Wheat Board’s contingency fund, which farmers claim as theirs, will bankroll the government-owned grain company’s privatization. The contingency fund was created in 2001 to backstop the now-defunct Producer Payment Options. Surplus earnings from hedging and related activities were used to offset hedging losses. The deal, to be completed by year’s end, is being financed through CWB retained earnings and non-government guaranteed borrowing, CWB president and CEO Ian White said in an interview. Federal legislation requires CWB Ltd., created when the Canadian Wheat Board’s marketing monopoly ended, to either privatize by 2018 or wind down. Some farm leaders, includi n g Ke y s t o n e A g r i c u l t u ra l Producers (KAP) president
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See CWB on page 6 »
co-operator staff Brandon
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t’s being called a last resort, but delegates at last week’s annual municipal convention have voted in favour of taking the province to court over forced amalgamation. Sixty per cent of delegates voted yes to a late resolution calling for legal action now that the AMM has failed every other attempt to prevent the province from forcing the issue. The Modernization of Municipalities Act, which became law in October, requires municipalities with less than 1,000 to submit a plan for amalgamation by December 1. The boundaries are to be redrawn in time for municipal elections in October 2014. Most municipalities have drawn up plans, but remain vehemently opposed to the top-down approach the province is taking for boundary reform.
No choice
Archie Heinrichs, mayor of Plum Coulee, whose council brought forward the resolution calling for court action, said they’re left with no other choice. The province has “very unreasonable timelines” in place and the 1,000 threshold is unfair, he said. “It should be our residents who make that decision, and they have had no input into the decision,” Heinrichs said. “There’s been no listening by the province.” “The province has shown no respect to us at all,” added RM of Glenwood councillor, Walter Findlay who was in favour of taking court action. “What is the next thing on their agenda that they are going to try to jam down our throats when they know they can get away with this? Challenge them, it’s the only way they’re going to learn.” An amendment put forward asking AMM to first find out if the challenge had any merit was resoundingly defeated. But Doug Dobrowolski, AMM president said later the association’s board must first seek legal advice before moving forward. They’ll know shortly if it’s feasible, he later told reporters. See AMM on page 7 »
Sixty per cent of voters supported a resolution asking the AMM to take the province to court over forced amalgamation. photo: lorraine stevenson
BARLEY: SHOOTING FOR YIELD OF 180 BUSHELS » PAGE 17