(file photo)

 

Contrary to what the government is saying, the Federal Court ruling issued this week could hold up the Tories' plan to end the Canadian Wheat Board's single desk according to a Winnipeg-based lawyer.

Justice Douglas Campbell ruled in the CWB and Friends of the Canadian Wheat Board's favour, agreeing that the federal agriculture minister acted illegally by introducing Bill C-18 without consulting the board and conducting a producer plebiscite.

"I just can't imagine the government will ignore this ruling. This is the court, which is charged with intrepreting the law, telling the government that it cannot pass this law," says Art Stacey. "I would think that in view of this consideration the Senate would simply stop its considerations of the bill."

"This ruling essentially is the Federal Court telling the government it cannot enact this legislation without holding the plebicsite. And so I think this brings the legislative process around this bill to a complete halt," he says.

"Presumably the federal government respects and will follow the decision of the Federal Court, and until there's an appeal that is successful, the Federal Court has clearly said that this law will not be valid in its present form," says Stacey.

He says the government will likely try to fast-track its appeal.

"But from there, either the government or the wheat board would obviously have a further right of appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada," he says. "I think it'll be in the interest of everybody concerned that they do that because this kind of uncertainty is of really no help to producers, or to the trade or anybody else involved in the grain markets."

Stacey has been involved in CWB issues in court before, representing farmers in the late 1990's in the case that saw producers go to jail for hauling grain into the U.S. Since then he's been involved with developing shortline rail companies in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.