The Rural Voice, 1988-06, Page 21The briefing breaks up and the
group rushes off. Because today's
audience is so influential, several of
the staff will be on hand for this
luncheon.
Downstairs, Jim Lehman has the
car ready. Any visions of chauffeured
limousines vanish. The car is an
Oldsmobile 98, small enough that only
four people can fit in comfortably.
Not everyone can go in the car. Lee
Allison and Jim Fitzgerald take a cab
to the Park Plaza on Bloor Street
where the luncheon is taking place.
Lee Allison has recently taken
over as director of the Communi-
cations Branch of the ministry. She
has come a long way since, as a jour-
nalism student at the University of
Western Ontario, she worked for a
short while with the Clinton News -
Record — Fitzgerald was the editor.
Now she heads a department in charge
of everything from speechwriting and
the publication of OMAF brochures
to a radio and television service oper-
ated out of the Guelph office where
she started work years ago.
Riddell is already there, mingling
with the writers. He reads his five-
page speech while the audience eats.
Riddell must be out by 1:15 to make it
to the Legislature in time for question
period.
Most of the questions from the
reporters revolve around Riddell's
announcement of the Food Systems
2002 program to reduce pesticide use
by 50 per cent in the next 15 years.
Why 15 years? he's asked, and he says
he'd love to see the target met sooner.
What about pesticide residues on
imported produce? That's a federal
problem, Riddell replies, again noting
that he worries about provisions in the
Canada -U.S. trade agreement that call
for a harmonizing of health and in-
spection standards. He says he hopes
that when standards are harmonized
they will be to the highest, not the
lowest, level.
Reporter and columnist Gord
Wainman asks about demands from
the Ontario Federation of Agriculture
and the Queen's Bush Rural Ministry
that the province step in to provide
farmers with the long-term financing
that isn't being provided by the
federal government's Farm Credit
Corporation. Riddell replies that such
a program would cost the province
$1.5 billion a year and would mean
huge cuts in other farm programs.
Instead, he says, he is trying to work
with federal Minister of Agriculture
John Wise to get Farm Credit working
the way it should be.
He keeps answering questions
beyond the deadline that will let him
make it to the Legislature on time.
Finally the questioning is ended, al-
though Riddell appears ready to go on.
Outside the door, however, he is stop-
ped by a TV crew and another reporter
for more questions. The interviews
continue for several more minutes
before Fitzgerald gently interrupts.
Riddell hasn't had any lunch.
Minutes later, the car pulls up
outside the Legislature. Hans Feld-
mann is waiting impatiently with an
eight -inch -thick briefcase filled with
documents the minister may need as
background during question period.
Feldmann, who's in charge of the leg-
islative end of the office, will wait in
an anteroom with the briefcase in case
any background is needed. He's also
in charge of taking bills through the
legislative process and looking after
Riddell's political work in the five or
six ridings where he's the minister
designated to attend the party's
organizational meetings and such.
Feldmann is nervous because they
were supposed to have had a briefing
session at 11:30. Now there is a quick
briefing as they hurry through the
halls.
Question period has begun as Rid-
dell takes his seat beside Lily Munro,
the Minister of Communications, on
the front bench (they often joke that
they both deal with culture).
For Riddell, this is probably the
quietest time he's spent all day. As
the questions from the opposition
begin they're all directed at Treasurer
Robert Nixon, based on his budget
from the day before. Riddell sits
quietly, not taking part in the sniping
and joking that goes gack and forth
across the house.
Later, back in his office at 810
Bay, there are a few more minutes of
relative relaxation. Riddell takes time
to chat about things not related to
business. But outside Jim Lehman is
already pacing. It's 3:30 and he's
starting to worry about the swelling
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