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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News Record, 2015-10-07, Page 3Wednesday, October 7, 2015 • News Record 3 Federal candidates talk agriculture, science in Holmesville Dave Flaherty Postmedia Network Three weeks ahead of the federal election, Huron - Bruce's four candidates voiced their views on a num- ber of agricultural issues at a debate in Holmesville. The debate, hosted by the Huron Federation of Agricul- ture, was standing room only at the Holmesville Commu- nity Centre on September 30. In attendance were Con- servative Party incumbent Ben Lobb, the New Demo- cratic Party's (NDP) Gerard Creces, Liberal Party candi- date Allan Thompson and Jutta Splettstoesser of the Green Party. In his opening remarks, Lobb said the PCs have negotiated many free trade agreements, such as those with Korea and the Euro- pean Union, that will reduce or eliminate tariffs on "all products grown in Huron -Bruce': Splettstoesser said the Green Party is only one that "takes a stance on all public issues." A German native who immigrated to Canada, Splettstoesser said "agricul- ture is what brought me to this part of the world." She claimed she has taken the "Food and Water First" pledge to show her commit- ment to protecting Canada's "most important resources". The NDP will continue to build on the success it has had in the past few federal elections, Creces said. He believes Ottawa "should follow the example of local communities': "We have to end the soci- ety of entitlement," said the former journalist for The Goderich Signal Star and Clinton News Record. Thompson, a former jour- nalist for The Toronto Star and professor at Carleton University, said he has a great belief in the motto that "farmers feed cities." He voiced his disappoint- ment with what he called a lack of discussion about agricultural issues during the national leader debates. He said there needs to be protection of "supply man- agement" for Canadian commodities. The debate was divided into written questions and queries from the floor. Candidates were first asked what they feel is the biggest issue facing the agri- culture industry. Lobb said his party is committed towards "increasing markets for Canadian products" and reducing or eliminating tariffs. He said agreements such as the proposed TPP will "offer farms an opportunity to compete with interna- tional farmers Cuts to AgriStability have made the program lose its value to farmers, Spletts- toesser explained. She also called for more education on agriculture in secondary schools. Creces said there needs to be more planning for the future as the farming indus- try is changing. "The death of small -to - mid -sized farms - we are seeing that." He said the costs of run- ning or starting up a farming business are astronomical. "We have to put our heads together and make it an affordable business to get into;" he added. Thompson said farmers need "bankable and predict- able support" from the fed- eral government. To him, former Ministers of Agriculture such as Eugene Whalen and Don Mazankowski had their fin- ger of the pulse of issues that were facing farmers at the time, stating that the govern- ment needs to reach out to farmers to help develop and shape the programs meant to assist them. Candidates were then asked how their party would support sustainability and growth in livestock sectors, namely beef production. "We need to stand behind supply management," Splettstoesser said, adding Canada cannot "give up our domestic standards for a trade agreement." Creces echoed this senti- ment, adding that there is increasing pressure from Europe and the United States for Canada to give in to certain demands. "Don't compromise our standards;" Creces said. He also claimed smaller abattoirs shouldn't be held to the same standards as large factories. Cuts to AgriStability have left farmers "waiting too long for too little support'; Thompson said. He said there needs to be better "risk management funding" for livestock farm- ers as they don't have crop insurance and supply man- agement to fallback on. In his view, the federal government should be on board for risk management programs, such as the one Ontario has implemented. Lobb said a decade ago beef farmers were "on their backs He said the Conservatives have signed key deals and that beef prices are at some of their highest levels. "We've done our job to protect Ontario farmers," he said. On the topic of trade agreements, Creces criti- cized the PCs "lack of trans- parency" when it comes to the TPP He said trade agreements should "add value to the goods and shouldn't be a hindrance." Instead of exporting raw commodities, Creces said Canada should be process- ing them and creating jobs locally. Thompson said as a "trad- ing nation'; agreements such as the TPP are needed. However, he questioned whether people can trust that Stephen Harper is "pro- tecting supply management" and claimed the PCs are keeping "Canadians in the dark:' Lobb said the intent of agreements such as the TPP is to "reduce tariffs': "I don't know how much clearer you can be." He said when the Liberal Party was in power during the 1990s and early -2000s they "concluded no deals of any significance", before claiming the past decade has been "the best 10 years in agriculture" in Canada's history. Splettstoesser said her party is supportive of trading but she questioned the wis- dom of locking the country into such long-term agreements. She said in some ways "foreign interests have more rights than Canadian prop- erty owners "What about fair trade instead of free trade," she asked. The discussion then moved from agriculture to the treatment of Canada's veterans. Thompson said the Harper government has treated veterans "so shab- bily" that they have created groups to advocate against his party. He said if elected, the Lib- erals would provide benefits such as life-long pensions for injured soldiers and four years of paid education for veterans who wish to return to school. Shuttered Veterans Affairs offices would also be reo- pened, he said. "Just give veterans the respect they deserve," Thompson said. Lobb claimed the Con- servatives have "modern- ized" the Veteran Affairs department and made gains in providing benefits to sol- diers with Post -Traumatic Syndrome Disorder and other mental health issue. He said his party has cut down the amount of time it takes veterans to receive benefits and they can now meet with Veterans Affairs staff in person instead of receiving a package in the intonn•w r•csrs.co mail. In response, Creces quipped that a lot of the meetings "Conservatives had (with veterans) were in a courthouse." He claimed $1.13 billion of the $3 billion budget for Vet- erans Affairs was unspent. Creces said the NDP would create long-term care facilities for veterans and help pay for their funerals. Additionally, he said his party would "treat all veterans similarly" and get rid of the current class system. "It doesn't matter if you served in Bosnia or in Afghan- istan, you served your coun- try," Creces said. Splettstoesser said govern- ments have been sending sol- diers into war without consid- ering the potential costs of when they return to Canada. "We will support our veterans:' The four were asked if they feel there would be any opportunities for famers if marijuana was legalized or decriminalized. Splettstoesser said it would be highly regulated and she didn't personally feel it would present many opportunities. However, she did acknowl- edge it would bring in a signif- icant amount of tax revenue. Creces said the NDP sup- ports decriminalization mainly on the philosophy that tax dollars shouldn't be used to put people through the court system for cases that are usually thrown out. Thompson said while the Liberal party is in favour of the legalization of marijuana, he had not thought about it in terms of agriculture. He said they want to "avoid a situation where we are turning young people into criminals" and that legalization is not about making access to marijuana easier or encouraging its use. "It's about regulating and getting it out of the hands of criminal gangs," Thompson said. "It's a progressive move." CONTINUED > PAGE 5 Thanksgiving HOLIDAY DEADLINE... For News, Classifieds & Advertising for October 14, 2015 issus is TH U RS., OCT 8 AT 2PM OUR OFFICE WILL BE CLOSED MON., OCT. 12 Have a safe & happy holiday! From all of us at �ws Record 53 Albert St., Clinton 519-482-3443