national farmers union

SASKATOON, Sask. -"The federal government deregulated air transportation claiming that competition would provide protections. With the failure of Canadian Airlines, we are left with a virtual monopoly in Canada. The result of deregulation is a private monopoly and the need for renewed regulation," pointed out NFU Transportation Committee Chair Terry Boehm.

The federal government is considering further deregulation of the grain handling and transportation system-possible removing the rate cap, weakening the Canadian Wheat Board's role in transportation, and paving the way for accelerated elevator closure and branchline abandonment.

"Willard Estey and Arthur Kroeger believed, or pretended they believed, that competition would protect farmers as the government deregulated the railways. The merger of Canadian National Railway (CN) with Burlington Northern Sante Fe (BNSF) should give Estey, Kroeger, and the government pause. That merger would create a $18.5 billion per year super-carrier," said Boehm.

"Further, there is real doubt that Canada's other railway, CP, can survive with its tracks sandwiched between CN's to the north and BNSF's to the south. CP rail may go the way Canadian Airlines. If this happens, western farmers will be left with a private monopoly railway," he stated.

Boehm concluded: "Maybe the federal government should learn from its mistakes. Maybe it should note the fact that Canadian Airlines used to be called CP Airlines. If we blindly pursue deregulation, history may well repeat itself."

The National Farmers Union believes that farmers need strong regulatory protections to shield them from the near-monopoly power of Canada's private railways. Those protections must include:

• distance-based rates and a rate cap with regular costing reviews and productivity-gain sharing;
• a strong continued role for the Canadian Wheat Board;
• co-operative car allocation with farmer participation; and
• a central agency to oversee branchline abandonment and shortline creation which takes into account farmers' total costs, road impacts, and the public good.

For More Information:

• Terry Boehm, NFU Trans. Committee Chair: (306) 255-2880 or 257-3689
  
• Darrin Qualman, Executive Secretary: (306) 652-9465