You wouldn't think Agriculture Minister Norm Letnick and Core Review Minister Bill Bennett would have any interpersonal communication problems. They're members of the same party, ministers in the same cabinet and for the last while have been working on the same file -- redesign of the Agricultural Land Reserve.
Plus, they sit right beside each other on the front row. If they need to communicate, it's just a matter of turning their heads. But they seemed to be sitting inside different message boxes last week and they were busy this week trying to get their themes to converge.
Letnick was named agriculture minister two weeks ago to replace the ailing Pat Pimm. One of his first jobs was to get up to speed on the ALR legislation that Bennett helped craft as part of the core review. He sounded remarkably open-minded about what might happen after a marathon meeting with farming interests.
"The opportunity is everything from amending the bill to leaving it alone to removing the bill," Letnick told the Vancouver Sun. "I haven't landed on any particular recommendation yet, because I'm not finished my consultation process."
But then Bennett screwed the lid back down on the idea of changes. He said nothing major is going to happen to his bill and the deal is done. The bill leaves the ALR untouched on Vancouver Island, in the Okanagan and in the Lower Mainland. In the rest of B.C. it allows for new social, cultural and economic factors to be considered when it comes to farmland designation. And it gives more authority to regional panels to make such calls.
In Bennett's view, Letnick can consult respectfully with everyone until the cows come home. But "the bill is going to pass this session, and it's going to have two zones in it."
If you're following this agrarian drama, that makes for a bit of a stark contrast. Letnick: Absolutely anything can happen. Bennett: Nothing major is going to happen.
The duo returned to the legislature this week and there was a different dynamic. Bennett clammed up. "I really want to make sure I stay out of his way," he said.
Asked what the point of consultation is if the bill won't be changed, he said: "You should ask the agriculture minister about all that sort of thing. I'm not in charge of the file."
And Letnick went to some lengths under grilling from the Opposition to explain what's going on. He's going to consult more with the agriculture groups. He's going to consult with the Agricultural Land Commission and he's going to keep reading letters. He said thousands of people have written him about the changes. He's read every letter and wants to read more.
"I would encourage all British Columbians ... to continue writing to me," he said. He'll land on a recommendation in a few weeks and then "announce if there are any changes."
In the meantime, the bill was introduced March 27 and hasn't been debated since then. With the session adjourning May 29, the fate of the ALR likely won't be known until late May. The bill could proceed, it could be amended, it could be postponed until the fall or the idea could be dropped.
Bennett and Letnick seem to be on the same track now. We just don't know yet where it's going.
Just So You Know: One small point to keep in mind -- Letnick bucked his party a few years ago on a point of principle. In 2009, just a few months after he was first elected, a bill that gave police the authority to escort homeless people to shelters, against their will if necessary, was introduced. Letnick voiced some restrained concerns about police forcibly taking people who had not broken any laws to places they did not want to go. He feared it could trigger mental health crises and drive them into hiding. He told the house the law "has the potential to do more harm than good," and he joined the NDP in opposing it.
So he's been known to think for himself.
