GM’S MESSAGE
But our experience has been that not
all consultations seem genuine. In fact,
quite a bit of our advocacy work this
summer has been to speak up where
consultations were inadequate.
survey to hear more from farmers. (To take the survey, go to
www.seedroyaltysurvey.com.)
Genuine consultation needed
Policy makers worry about “consultation fatigue.” However,
it is not the volume of consultations that create weariness,
but the perceived insincerity of them. KAP certainly doesn’t
expect its position to set policy every time, but we do expect
our input to be valued and that we will have insight into how
the final decision was made.
Governments wish to be transparent and consultative,
but in my view, they have forgotten two important consultation
principles:
1. Policy makers should be clear about what is on the table
and what isn’t. If some aspects are not subject to change,
that should be clearly communicated.
2. Policy makers should share the information they receive
and their analysis to show how a decision was made.
Where stakeholder input is reflected in the proposed
regulations or policy, policy makers should be able to
outline the reasons why.
KAP’s job is to understand the impact of agricultural policy
decisions and communicate the opinions of its members on
the issues that matter. I think that we could be doing better in
agricultural policy if we were able to engage in open and genuine
consultation with government policy makers. FV
gstockstudio/123rf
40 § Manitoba Farmers’ Voice § Fall 2019
/www.seedroyaltysurvey.com.)
