Farmers for economic freedom

Updates from the Prairie Centre Policy Institute from Regina, Saskatchewan.

Hot off the press! Don Baron's Jailhouse Justice and
Canada's Great Grain Robbery
are now available at
http://www.ajagra.com/authors_comment/baron/baron.htm

web posted January 12, 2004

It’s high time that Ottawa got out of Ottawa

By Dr. Graham Parsons

The federal government at its highest levels is just too centralized in Ottawa. This is true at both the political and bureaucratic levels.

It is often said that there are two worlds in Canada - Ottawa and the rest of the country. There is much truth to this allegation that is founded, in part, on the absence of effective information flows to and from the regions. And this is one reason why the federal government can be so insensitive to the importance of certain local issues. Take SARS for or example, the outbreak in Toronto gets an immediate response, but Mad Cow or U.S. lumber tariffs, or droughts in the West seem to be much lower priorities on the federal agenda. Any federal government must be a national government and that means being fully familiar with and responsive to the issues in all regions of our country – the West included.

In a modern information-based society there is really no need for ignorance of the regionally significant issues. The Prime Minister’s Office and the Privy Council Office should not be closeted in Ottawa. They should establish a presence in all regions of Canada. And regional Cabinet meetings should be a normal reality of modern Canadian government and not simply photo opportunities.

Until information can flow directly from all regions to the main decision making points in government, the politicians and bureaucrats in Ottawa will remain isolated from the people who elect and pay them to serve. Regional political representation through a Triple E Senate, for example, would further strengthen the information flow. How about putting a Triple E Senate out West?

But, improved information alone will not result in more effective and timely decisions. It must also be processed by individuals who understand the context for the information. This has been lacking, particularly with respect to Western Canada. There are just too few public servants in Ottawa who understand today’s West. It is time for western Canadians to be able to participate at the highest levels of their government without having to learn French or to go to Ottawa. A coherent regionalization of the federal system could help this.

It is often argued that regionalization of the federal government can only really occur at an administrative level. That may be ok for collecting taxes, but not for setting policy. That’s a central function. Well, I do not believe this to be true. If you want to talk cod, you need to be in the Maritimes, and if you want to have good policy on energy or grains you better be out West. If you want to keep close to western issues don’t expect to do it from Ottawa.

The federal government has experimented with decentralization, and for a little while there was an effort to make it work. But, other federal priorities took over and it was lost. I still believe Ottawa should consider regionalizing some of its highest level policy functions. This would dramatically improve the quality of federal information available and help the federal government start to become truly sensitive to the needs of its population and economy out West.

Indeed, why do national institutions always have to be based in central Canada anyway? The Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) was started as a federal agency to help prairie farmers deal with and protect themselves against the drought of the 1930s and droughts in successive years. It did good work and the people of the West recognized its useful role. Drought proofing with shelterbelts, dams, dugouts, irrigation canals and other skills have transformed many areas of the Prairie, and the expertise has been used around the world. Yet, for the past thirty years Ottawa bureaucrats have consistently attempted to bring about its end.

Federal regionalization is possible. Just examine the federal system at all administrative, policy and regulatory levels and move those functions that relate to the West into the West.

Excerpted from a speech Dr. Graham Parsons recently delivered to the Western Economic Opportunities Conference in Calgary. An economist, Dr Parsons is President of the Organization for Western Economic Cooperation and sits on the Prairie Centre’s Board of Academic Advisors.

Prairie Centre Policy Institute
#205, 1055 Park Street
Regina, SK
S4N 5H4

Phone: 306-352-3828
Fax: 306-352-5833
Web site: http://www.prairiecentre.org
Email: prairie.centre@sk.sympatico.ca


The CFEN and CFFJ need your help! The battle against the Canada Wheat Board can only continue with your support.

Canadian Farm Enterprise Network
Box 521
Central Butte, Saskatchewan
S0H 0T0
CANADA
Canadian Farmers for Justice
c/o Ron Duffy
R.R. #4
Lacombe, Alberta
T0C 1S0
http://www.farmersforjustice.com/

Write the following and demand free market rights for Western Canadian farmers!

The Canadian Wheat Board
423 Main Street
P.O. Box 816, Stn. M.
Winnipeg, MB
Canada
R3C 2P5

Telephone: (204) 983-0239 / 1-800-ASK-4-CWB
Fax: (204) 983-3841

Email Address: cwb@cwb.ca

Ralph Goodale
Minister Responsible for the Canada Wheat Board
Department of Natural Resources Canada
21 - 580 Booth Street
Ottawa, ON
Canada
K1A 0E4

Telephone: (613)996-2007
Fax Number: (613)996-4516
Email Address: rgoodale@NRCan.gc.ca

 

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