Opinion
This morning at the Ontario Federation of Agriculture Annual General Meeting in Toronto, the Premier and Provincial Ag Minister, Kathleen Wynne, talked to the delegates about the state of agriculture in the province. Wynne talked about job growth, the opportunity for young people and more. When the meeting was handed off to the question and answer portion, it seemed that the three questions were quite stern. Usually at these types of events someone there will be at least one person that shows some support for the minister by thanking them or asking a question that will create a positive discussion. Based on the tone of this Q & A, Wynne has some work to do to gain the trust of this audience.
Wynne was challenged on three issues:
- The process for counties to ban wind turbines in its region
- Local food legislation — A farmer, who seemed angry, suggested that Wynne’s government was doing little to ensure local food was able to compete in markets due to highly competitive lower priced items.
- Ontario’s susceptibility to job losses due to foreign ownership of food processing
As I watched the questions I felt Wynne was quite good on her feet in answering the questions but the delegates showed little respect for her answers.
One person in the audience took real issue with the way that OFA President Mark Wales handled the Q&A portion by not stepping in.
@markwhalesfarm should be ashamed of himself for allowing that q/a spectacle at #ofagm13 with @Kathleen_Wynne. #embarrassed for #ontag
— Warren S (@farmerschneck) November 25, 2013
If you cannot see the above embedded tweet CLICK HERE
Back on February 6th, 2013 we asked our audience about Kathleen Wynne’s ability to handle both her Premier and Ag Minister responsibilities and 59.02% of you voted that she wasn’t the right Ag-Minister choice regardless.
It appears that at least for many, Kathleen Wynne has some work to do to gain the hearts and trust of her rural constituents.
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