Doug Ford was a no show at the OFA AGM due to security issues
During their AGM, Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) attendees didn’t get the opportunity to tell Ontario’s Premier in person that they want action against US tariff threats because Doug Ford bailed at the last minute due to a security issue – but they passed a motion that spelled it out.
Advertisement 2
Article content
Article content
Article content
With about 10 minutes notice, Ford canceled the 8:30 am scheduled speaking slot on Nov. 26 at the Toronto event. But within the hour the Premier’s radio conversation with CFRA’s Bill Carroll was being aired.
Premier Ford was incensed at being lumped in with Mexico, which is also facing a possible 25% tariff hike on imports by the US, unless their borders don’t curtail drugs and migrants.
“It’s like kicking a family member in the face,” Ford said of the threat made by incoming US president, Donald Trump and his administration.
He did acknowledge Canada needs to tighten up its borders, adding, “I think we need to work together, get us off the same page as Mexico.”
Increased tariffs would impact not only Canada but also the US, the Premier said.
Advertisement 3
Article content
He also told his radio host he’d spoken to Prime Minister Trudeau about a meeting involving the other premiers.
When OFA president Drew Spoelstra took the internship at the Delta Hotel near the Toronto airport just before Ford was to speak, he explained that police were in the area and there was a security issue that caused the cancellation of the Premier’s address.
“We look forward to connection with him at another time,” Spoelstra said. Nothing was scheduled for the balance of the two-day AGM, however, according to OFA’s communications.
But later in the day during the portion of the AGM’s handling proposed resolutions, a former President of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA), Ron Bennett, put forward a last-minute, multi-part directive aimed at the government.
Advertisement 4
Article content
It asked the OFA board to work with the CFA board government immediately to engage with the Canadian and “ask Canadian officials to negotiate with the US to obtain an exemption for agricultural products and continue to respect current CUSMA trading rules.”
The resolution also called for a targeted list of US products imported into Canada upon which to take retaliatory action – as well as to “investigate the opportunity for Canada to be the preferred supplier of agricultural products to replace US exports to countries affected by US tariffs. ”
It passed with almost unanimous support.
Article content