Bill C-18 committee  I think the farmers of western Canada are quite capable of marketing their wheat and barley individually, and their decisions related to how they do that would not be different from those they take with the other crops they currently market—canola and pulse crops. I can't comme

Bill C-18 committee  The letter is a reply I got from the chairman of the board on his receipt of my resignation letter. The second paragraph, I guess, in a way summarizes the attitude that if it's not in agreement with the organization, then you're going to find yourself in hot water. That kind of

Bill C-18 committee  That's a good question. In my time at the Wheat Board, I worked in the best interests of the organization and to fulfill my duties as a director. I had the opportunity to attend the Directors College in my term. It was a good organization and very clear on what a director's role

Bill C-18 committee  I'd like to draw your attention to the second paragraph--

Bill C-18 committee  The board of directors has a code of conduct, and you probably have one here at Parliament as well. There is a set of things in that code of conduct, and there is a governance committee that judges the directors on the basis of any complaint that comes forward relating to our ind

Bill C-18 committee  A director's responsibilities are very clear. They are the duty of loyalty and duty of care for the corporation.

Bill C-18 committee  Yes, the well-being of the corporation.

Bill C-18 committee  At the end of the day, the well-being of the corporation is represented, in my view, by the support of farmers for the corporation and the value that brings to the corporation. I saw the support of farmers for the corporation in the 60% range. To me, for a monopoly, that's not a

Bill C-18 committee  Let me put it to you this way. I farmed for 30 years. I saw a significant number of things the Canadian Wheat Board did that--

Bill C-18 committee  Let me finish. You're asking about what value I--

Bill C-18 committee  I'll answer your question. I saw things the Wheat Board was doing that I felt were taking value away from farmers. I thought I could contribute value to the Wheat Board by bringing my opinions to the table and have them incorporated into the policies of the organization. The org

Bill C-18 committee  From what I've seen in the last four years, I am completely comfortable with what's in this bill for the transition phase. The reason for that is we have a group of ideological bullies running this organization.

Bill C-18 committee  I went to the Wheat Board, as I have done in many organizations in my career, to contribute, to make a difference, and to try to move agriculture forward. I'd always heard about the single desk premiums. I was a little skeptical, because these should translate into profitability

Bill C-18 committee  No, I was finished.

Bill C-18 committee  Thank you for the question. The barley plebiscite that the government conducted in the past represented choice for farmers. It gave them three different options, including a voluntary one, and overwhelmingly they chose choice. In this last one, a lot of the farm community just s