CWB MONOPOLY VERSUS THE RIGHT TO SELL ONE'S OWN PROPERTY
By Garry Breitkreuz, M.P. Yorkton-Melville
March 29, 2007

On January 23, 2006 Canadians voted for change and told us they wanted marketing choice for Western Canadian wheat and barley producers. We are delivering on that promise. On March 28, 2007, the results of the barley plebiscite were released, and a clear majority of the farmers who cast votes indicated they wanted to end the Canadian Wheat Board’s (CWB) monopoly on barley.

The future of the CWB monopoly is a passionate issue among all Western Canadian producers. However, lost in the conversations pertaining to the future of the CWB is the right of Canadians to own property. If a product is owned by an individual, it should be up to that individual to decide who he or she sells to and at what price. By forcing western farmers to sell their own grain to the CWB, their right to own property is virtually non-existent. Moreover, there is no equality among Canadian farmers. Farmers in provinces other than Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Alberta and British Columbia, are permitted to sell their grain to whomever they choose.

I believe every farmer has the right to own the fruits of his own labour and the right to be free from arbitrary interference by government. As it stands now, Western Canadian farmers are required to sell their wheat and barley to the CWB; yet the CWB can choose not to purchase the grain. What’s more incredible is that even if the CWB denies purchase, the farmers still cannot find an alternate buyer. Bins full of worthless grain have cost many farmers their livelihood.

Since the beginning of my time serving as a Member of Parliament, I have introduced motions and supported the right of a Canadian to own property. Most recently, I introduced Private Members Bill C-223, An Act to amend An Act for the Recognition and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and to amend the Constitution Act, 1867. The Canadian Bill of Rights, as it currently is worded, protects only three things: the right to the enjoyment of property; the right not to be deprived of property except by due process; and finally, the right to a fair hearing. Unfortunately the Bill of Rights does not prevent the arbitrary taking of property, and that is a very serious matter.

• The Bill of Rights does not protect our right to be paid any compensation let alone fair compensation, nor to have it fixed impartially.
• The Bill of Rights does not protect our right to receive timely compensation or to apply to the courts to obtain justice.

My bill would ensure that every person’s property rights would be guaranteed in every law in Canada unless it is expressly declared that the Act shall operate notwithstanding the Canadian Bill of Rights.

While much has been said about a farmer’s right to vote on the future of the CWB, in reality Western Canadian farmers’ have limited rights already. Ultimately the debate is not about a monopoly versus dual marketing, but instead of whether a government should dictate and control one’s property versus an individual’s right to property and to profit from that property.

In all, 29,067 western barley farmers chose to take part in the barley plebiscite, conducted by the independent firm KPMG. Sixty-two per cent of those barley producers told us they want to remove barley from the CWB monopoly.

Our intention is to make marketing choice for western Canada’s barley growers a reality by August 1 of this year. And a Western Canadian producer’s barley crop will be truly that - a crop belonging to the producer, with its sale and sale price controlled by the producer.