Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - March 17, 1987, Winnipeg, Manitoba Free press March focus Saskatchewan Potash troubles seem familiar Regina similarities Are so obvious with the late 1960s in this province that it is impossible not to draw parallels with what is happen ing like 1969 the Saskatchewan farm Economy was in an oversupply of world Grain stocks had pushed Down prices and put the financial squeeze on at the same the Saskatchewan Potash Industry was in Dinar it was on the verge of a problem created by overproduction that in seven years had in creased Potash output from Mil lion tons to the buzzword in the provincial government was re a Call that is again being if the government did not Cut its streamline its operation and become More Effi the economic problems would Only become More the pub Lic was expected to tighten its Belt and reduce one of the major policy develop ments that grew out of that Era was Potash determined to save the Industry from itself and cutthroat then re Mier Ross Thatcher called together the Heads of Potash companies operating in the province and or dered them to get their House in there would tie no room for threat now comes from the result was a system where the Saskatchewan Potash producers carved up the Market and had their production strictly controlled by the provincial at the same a floor Price was set that allowed the mines to Limp through the poor Market conditions until de Mand strengthened in the Early but the pro rationing legislation also triggered a constitutional Chal Central Canada Potash argued pro rationing was directed at the marketing of Potash beyond the Borders of the it was an infringement on exclusive Federal Powers governing inter pro Vinci Al and International Trade and in the pro rationing Law was struck Down As unconstitutional by the supreme it is based on that that the Devine government nervously staged a recent meeting with Potash Industry officials in the subject was How to Deal with a petition by american Potash producers seeking a 43 per cent Tariff on Canadian Potash new mex Ico based Potash in a petition to the Commerce department argue that Canadian pot Ash is being dumped into the american Market at prices that Are below the Cost of if the petition is successful and Canadian Potash is ruled As unfair it could deliver a fatal Dale Eisler in Saskatchewan blow to what is already an Industry crippled by Low prices and weak economic development and Trade minister Bob Andrew estimates the Cost to the Industry could be As High As million a in the background to the grim economic implications of the Potash Are explosive Legal issues that straddle the any attempt to restrict the flow of Potash out of Saskatchewan would unearth the constitutional questions raised by the pro rationing plans of an earlier As any attempt to artificially set or Divide the would surely be challenged by antitrust with most private Potash companies operating in Saskatchewan based in the they would be liable to prosecution under american for that the Regina meet ing was approached very cautiously by everyone i made it Clear at the opening of the meeting that the meeting was not to Deal in any shape or form with trying to fix the or trying to Lessen Competition Andrew we did not want to discuss anything that would violate Canadian antitrust or antitrust the government simply expressed its support of the Industry and promised to do whatever it could to counter the Tariff the group agreed to share information in an Effort to build a but specific plans were kept conf it is at this where the similarities Between 1969 and today Dis unlike 18 years when the problem was one of the situation today has been created by weak a depressed world agriculture Market has deflated de Mand for which is used As a with Farmers attempting to reduce fertilizer has often become a nonessential although pro rationing has not been in effect since the Early its Impact is still being Felt on the Saskatchewan an out growth of the regulation was the creation of the offshore Potash marketing Agency that is owned by the Saskatchewan pro it handles sales into markets outside North allowing portions of sales to different mines based on their the result is a More orderly marketing system than in when Saskatchewan mines competed head Ohead for worldwide the is that the threat to the Industry now is not self inflicted from Over expansion in Saskatchewan and fierce internal it is rather an Issue of Law and that nations Domestic Trade the must also be much different than the direct Market intervention of the Thatcher the problem is How to survive the protectionist fever in the and overcome the Tariff for an already troubled and with million at the future of the Saskatchewan Industry could be at Broadbent does not have the Charisma of real but he Hopes to at least match his nip eyes Quebec Plum tories sagging popularity gives Hope for a breakthrough Montreal the new demo cratic party can scarcely believe what the latest polls Are telling which is that new democrats Are now As popular in Quebec As the mighty Federal All the newspaper pundits Are analysing the remarkable and apparently solid strength of the nip in this where it has never been More than a fringe party and has never elected a member of they Are drawing Learned parallels with when real Caouette social creditors came out of nowhere to win 26 of the provinces 75 seats and rear Range the political map of nip Leader de Broadbent is positively drooling at the Prospect of his party making that kind of que Bec breakthrough in the next Feder Al slumping tories there is reason for his for months the nip in Quebec has been outpacing the slumping tories of prime minister Brian now an Angus Reid poll shows the new democrats threatening the liberals in their Trade Tiona Quebec the nip was running even with the liberals at 40 per cent of the decided while the conservatives were at 17 per a drop of 33 percentage Points since the 1984 it is hard to explain the nip popularity in and even harder to predict whether or not it will hold up in an the party program and main personalities Are not Well known including its Only Quebec Robert who was elected As a tory but crossed the floor to join James Stewart in Quebec the it has Only a Skeleton organization the Leader of John works hard but has to spend a lot of his time in where he is a professor at York in provincial the nip hardly getting barely five per cent of poll support compared to 33 per cent for the parti quebecois and nearly 60 per cent for the governing All these factors tend to support the sceptics who say the Federal Dps Success in the polls is Arifi accidental and will not the floating vote that landed on the Mulroney tories in the 1984 elec Tion has now floated to the for Lack of a better it could float off somewhere else before the next or so say liberals and who Are doing a lot of whistling in the dark about the dreaded conservatives Howe that the collapse of support for the Mulroney government is Simi Lar to the collapse of support for the Diefenbaker government in 1962 which opened the door for Caouette liberals recognize there Are 2030 soft seats in the just As there were in 1962 and 1963 when Caouette won enough of them to Rob the Pearson liberals of a main the House of As there was a political vacuum in Quebec to be filled by the third and at the the nip is the Only credible Candi Date to fill the game is far from How and the parallel with the Early 1960s Breaks Down in important being a que Becer May have a better Chance to recover lost ground in Quebec than Diefenbaker fur the nip has no mesmerizing populist like Broadbent is an ontarian whose French is Harney is perfectly but rather aloof and other nip Lead ers in Quebec tend to be academics and Urban with none of the Homegrown Rural Appeal of the disgruntled voters courted by Caouette candidates made their gains outside the major in the the Eastern the nip support seems to come mainly from Public service and Blue Collar workers in the City who support the pm the nip May not be Able to count heavily on Quebec labor unions the major unions tend to support the which could also be threatened by a Strong nip in the the nip is still widely regarded in when it is regarded at As a primarily English party with Litte sympathy for regional interests or local Broadbent and the new democrats have recently made Progress in shucking that centralist producing a constitutional position that would Accord Quebec a kind of special status within Conedera the a Dequebec is also emphasizing its preference for leftist modernity and the party As a whole is focussing sharply on and this prov Ince can expect constant attention and wooing from the nip Between now and the next Broadbent smells Victory in que in the form of several seats in the next and at this Point not Many would accuse him of excessive Ideal candidate the Lale Robert said Broadbent was an Ideal candidate a social and a great Quebec a those Are the qualities the Leader would be looking for in nip the trouble the tories will be looking for the same kind of perhaps with a Little less emphasis on the social the tories and the in will be chasing the same political clients Quebe cers who voted yes in the referendum and now want to work for a different kind of Quebe cers who voted no and now want to work for a different kind of there Are a lot of votes and which Ever party can Corral them will have something to celebrate on election Freedom of information Bill remains in limbo while the government May keep promises about increasing it is not As prompt in fulfilling other such As free Dom of in Howard Pawley charged that the tories did not believe in such Freedom after their government refused to accept a private members Resolution on the at the same thing be said about his own in after the nip attorney general Roland Penner promised to open up the dark pools of government secrecy to Public speaking to the Manitoba association of rights and Liber he said Freedom of information Legisla Tion was Likely to be introduced before the end of the it would be easy to adminis unencumbered with the multitude of exemptions which could turn it into a bureaucratic he the first throne speech indicated that Steps will be taken to develop an appropriate Freedom of information policy for the reference to develop ment rather than specific legislation was appropriate because no Bill appeared that Penner hoped to keep the Promise in the fall although a draft copy of the legislation was circulated among government it did not appear on the order paper in 1983 or perhaps the government had intended to pro but other such As the French language took precedence and the administration was doing its Best to avoid any More potential Only after the dust had settled in 1985 was the Promise with another election on the it was time to show the voters that the nip cared and Penner formally introduced a Bill which would open the government and its agencies to greater under the dome Arlene Billinkoff Public that did not mean a wide open the Bill contained a number of but it also provided a review process to ensure that the right of Access was enforce Able and not said despite areas of he believed the wrinkles would be ironed therefore he awaited constructive suggestions from the that cooperative approach was echoed by the although Gerry Mercier was apprehensive about certain aspects of the he recognized the governments responsibility to act in the Public interest and the need for some because it was a step towards a More open the tories approved of the Basic principles and looked Forward to Public representation at after that the government was willing to Clear up confusion in several areas and limit exemptions and the amended Bill was Apall were pleased with their work and Penner said it would be proclaimed within a reasonable therein Lay the what was Rea by Many speculated that the government would not proclaim the act until after the election in order to avoid the emergence of any information which might Hurt the Dps that was said time was required to study the implementation procedures and a special committee was working with All due in he repeated that the process was taking a Little longer than expected because of the absolute mess of records and documents left by the tory it was going to take he and the act was not Likely to be proclaimed until 1986 the after the votes were the act still remained in time was required to prepare an Access guide and train civil servants to Deal with Penner explained to Mercier during the 1986 but it would come into effect within the by the next the minister admitted that he did not know when it would become several months the oppositions patience was wearing thin and Mercier wrote urging that the act be proclaimed immediately because suspicion was was the government merely incompetent or was it trying to hide More information from the Public he Judy who assumed responsibility for Freedom of insisted More time was required to get the records in a similar explanation was offered in the House last week when Mercier asked again about the proclamation Wasyly Ciales was pleased to report that work was proceeding very Well and the government was looking Forward to proclaiming the legislation in one that response was too much for should the opposition treat it in the same Way As the attorney generals statement two years ago that the act would be introduced in a few months he the minister lectured about the Complex process required to achieve the we have worked very diligently to ensure that we can put in place a system that is effective and responsive to the needs of Manitoban her government remained committed to the principles of this legislation and was within financial Limi to put in place effective mechanisms to ensure that the opposition and Public would be Able to get responses to their requests As quickly As the minister May believe under others Are based on the governments handling of the Issue for the past five cynicism is totally does the government really want the Public to know doonesbury by Garry Trudeau As you can Well those first lives of mine we Fie life in those pays was just Hunt amp the Fouting Wear you first half intone but i the omens fabulous tit i ebb Only up 70 the it a stub first Dight Pizur i i ;