Ontario Green Leader a knowledgeable and well spoken guy

Attached Audio: 

green.mp3

It looks like the Grey-Bruce Farmers Week was another outstanding success.  On the days I was there, attendance seemed very strong and the discussion and information lively and interesting. 

As Farmers Week wound down I found myself, along with a number of other invited guests, sitting down in Elmwood with new Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner. From that discussion it seems the Green Party is finally maturing in its understanding of agricultural policies –  a lesson other parties could emulate as it clearly comes from engaging farmers directly in discussion and asking the simple question, “So what do you think the answer is?”  I say it is about time because for too long I have heard Green Party candidates essentially say that all things would be cured if only all farmers were organic, with no further understanding of many of the issues facing all farmers, including organic farmers. 

One thing that was clear was that Mr Schreiner has a breadth of knowledge that is impressive on the topics of food and farming.  While this was hardly a surprise, having worked with him before, it is clear that he impressed many others as well.  As one farmer said to me, “That fellow from the Green Party is a knowledgeable and well spoken guy.”  And indeed he is.

The discussion was wide-ranging, but no matter the issue, it often traced its way back to the need for farming to become profitable again.  Some of the issues that made their way around the roundtable included problems with the Green Energy Act, the difficulty of getting local food produced by local farmers in their own local grocery stores, the loss of young farmers and the difficulty in finding Ontario grown food readily available for today’s busy families.  One issue Schreiner floated was the idea of providing tax credits for Ontario businesses who purchase Ontario grown food products.  This idea has merit, but will need to be more fully flushed out by the time the Ontario Greens present their platform to the people of Ontario in 2011.

Schreiner’s active engagement and clear ease at discussing these issues were evident throughout the meeting.  So, too, was the respect he had around the table from farmers who have had to endure a long history of politicians who have all the answers and spend most of the time talking and not listening.  The Greens are hoping to win their first seat in the Ontario Legislature in the next election.  At present that seems a daunting task.  However, Ontario political leaders could take a lesson in how to involve people in discussing issues from the Greens.  One thing that has always been a problem for the Greens is that many of their issue platforms read as wish lists with lots of motherhood statements that have very little meat on the bones.  Certainly Schreiner’s federal leader suffers greatly from a real lack of depth when discussing most issues that would be of interest to average voters in rural and small town Canada.  Schreiner at this point seems determined to avoid that trap.  However, as the old saying goes – the proof of the pudding will be in the eating.   For my part I left the meeting, once again, quite impressed with Mike Schreiner.

Grant Robertson is the senior elected official with the National Farmers Union-Ontario.  As Ontario Coordinator Robertson is also a National Board Member of the NFU. Grant and his family farm near Paisley, Ontario.  The author can be contacted at coordinator@nfuontario.ca

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