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NFU Press Release: CONSERVATIVES USE TAXPAYERS' MONEY TO KILL WHEAT BOARD
Nevember28, 2008
National Farmers Union
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NOVEMBER 27, 2008
National Head Office:
National Farmers Union 2717 Wentz Avenue Saskatoon, SK S7K 4B6 Phone: (306) 652-9465 Fax: (306) 664-6226 Email: nfu@nfu.ca Website: http://www.nfu.ca/
CONSERVATIVES USE TAXPAYERS' MONEY TO KILL WHEAT BOARD
David Anderson, a Conservative Member of Parliament, has taken his attack on Canadian democracy to a new and unprecedented low. In a letter addressed and mailed to voters in the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) director election, and written on Parliamentary letterhead, Anderson is using taxpayers' money to instruct farmers which candidates he wants them to vote for.
"Sam was seen as instrumental in brokering the merger between the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative parties. I am confident that Sam's experience in bringing divergent views together will well serve prairie grain farmers if he is elected as a CWB director," Anderson writes in the letter. The "Sam" that Mr. Anderson shills for is Sam Magnus, who currently sits on the National Council of the Conservative Party.
Stewart Wells, President of the National Farmers Union, said the letter is yet another display of extraordinary interference in the CWB director elections, where farmers are supposed to determine which of their counterparts will sit as five of the 10 farmer directors on the CWB board.
In the letter, Anderson completely ignores farmer candidate Bill Woods, a farmer from Eston, Saskatchewan, who supports the economic reality that single desk selling through the CWB brings value to producers through higher grain prices and reduced handling and transportation costs.
"I am outraged that Mr. Anderson has the taxpayers of Canada footing the bill to communicate his own policy position. This is a completely inappropriate use of taxpayer dollars to try and directly influence the outcome of what should be a democratic process paid for by CWB permit book holders. Perhaps this was the reason that the Conservative government removed the spending limit on third parties before the election started-so governments could use unlimited amounts of taxpayer dollars," said Wells.
The NFU has said in many press statements over the past 30 months that this Conservative government will say and do anything in order to kill the Canadian Wheat Board. "This is one more example of a government with no accountability and no respect for basic democracy," concluded Wells.
Copies of the letter written by David Anderson can be obtained by contacting the NFU office at news@nfu.ca <mailto:news@nfu.ca> or by calling 306-652-9465.
Contact:
Terry Boehm, NFU Vice-President (306) 255-2880 or (306) 257-3689
Terry Pugh, NFU Executive-Secretary (306) 652-9465 |