Ben Stewart, BC’s new Agriculture Minister is a partner of Richard Bullock, Chair of the Agricultural Land Commission, in Quail’s Gate Winery

http://www.leg.bc.ca/mla/39thParl/stewartb.htm

http://www.borgatalodge.net/okanaganwineries.htm

BC’s new Agriculture Minister, Ben Stewart, is the business partner of Richard Bullock, the new Chair of the Agricultural Land Commission just appointed in July, putting both men in a serious conflict of interest at a time when BC is losing farmland faster than at any time since before the creation of the Agricultural Land Reserve in 1973.

Stewart’s predecessor, Steve Thompson, had been in the post for little more than a year. In response to widespread public concerns about the loss of farmland, Thompson had instructed Chair Bullock to conduct a review of the Commission’s operations. Bullock extended to the Minister an open invitation to sit in on any of the presentations from approximately 60 groups that were hand-picked to present to the Review Panel. The Minister sat in on the Farmland Defence League’s presentation on August 25th.

Members of the Farmland Defence League met with the ALC Review Panel (which presentation was observed by former Ag Minister Steve Thompson) on August 25, 2010
While FDL had some concerns with the process of the Review (no opportunity for general public to participate at this stage, too little notice to participating groups to prepare), we were very hopeful that the review was indicative of recognition that things had to improve.
The panel concluded its meetings at the beginning of October and should be in the process of doing the final edits to its report to the Minister. But Steve Thompson will probably never see the results of the review he ordered.

One of our biggest concerns was the Campbell government’s flagrant disregard for the arm’s length distance that is supposed to exist between the Commission and the government. Farmland and food security advocates have been extremely aware over the last 6 years that cabinet (and in particular, the Premier), has been influencing the Commission’s decision making.

At the end of August, under the new Chair, the Agricultural Land Commission held a public hearing on Gordon Campbell’s application to put a highway through Langley’s historic Hudson’s Bay Farm. During the hearing a Langley farmer revealed that in a private meeting a few days earlier, the ALC’s new boss had disclosed that he “had a gun held to his head on this issue.”

Stewart is a businessman (albeit with connections to agri-business) and replaces a farmer. His appointment is extremely troubling as it causes us to wonder if this appointment is Campbell’s way of eliminating the need for a gun, causes us to wonder what will happen to the results of the Review, what level of cabinet interference we will see in the decisions (expected momentarily) on two high profile applications (Maple Ridge’s Pelton estates and Langley’s historic Hudson’s Bay Farm).

What is absolutely crystal clear is the fact that the cloak of corruption fits Campbell so well that he can’t be bothered with even the slightest appearance of maintaining the arm’s length relationship to the Commission that had existed until Campbell formed government.