“We need to support our world-class agricultural producers — they feed the world,” said Carla Beck, Saskatchewan NDP Leader and Agriculture Shadow Minister.
“We have heard overwhelming support to crackdown on illegal foreign farmland ownership from producers, major stakeholders and municipal leaders — I have no idea who the last Agriculture Minister was listening to, but it certainly wasn’t the producers of Saskatchewan.”
The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan wrote to ousted Agriculture Minister Daryl Harrison on Nov. 12 urging the need for “systematic changes” to farmland ownership. Harrison was bounced from cabinet last week and Dave Marit was named as his replacement.
Saskatchewan NDP Deputy Agriculture Shadow Minister Trent Wotherspoon wrote to Marit on Monday urging him to launch an immediate public inquiry into concerns about foreign entities buying up Saskatchewan farmland, including auditing past transactions and current farmland ownership to ensure compliance with the law.
Wotherspoon has repeatedly called for more resources, tools and teeth for the Farmland Security Board so it can investigate serious claims and concerns of foreign farmland ownership over the years. He’s also demanded stiff penalties for violators, audit and review of farmland transactions and ownership, and action to force the divestiture of land acquired and owned illegally by foreign entities that breached the law and cause the forfeiture of any profit.
The Provincial Auditor has found that the board only asked for a statutory declaration of ownership in 50 per cent of land transactions that were reviewed on the very limited basis where they required.
“The Sask. Party has insisted there’s nothing to see here, that producers’ concerns about illegal foreign farmland ownership are baseless. Well, let’s get to the bottom of it,” Wotherspoon said.
“If Scott Moe and his new Minister refuse this inquiry I have to ask — what exactly are they hiding?”
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