Brady calls on government to create Ag-Rural Affairs Committee

For immediate release:

January 17, 2025

QUEEN’S PARK – MPP Bobbi Ann Brady is making good on one of her 2022 election campaign promises and is asking the Ontario government to create a permanent standing committee dedicated to agriculture and rural affairs. This comes on the heels of her meeting at the State Agriculture Rural Leaders’ Summit in Iowa where she again heard about the many benefits of government leveraging the insights of a permanent agricultural and rural affairs standing committee.

“Many agriculture or rural affairs bills end up being scrutinized in unrelated committees. I believe rural Ontario and farmers would be better served by a dedicated permanent standing committee with agriculture and rural issues as a focus,” Brady wrote. “Having the insights from those with their “feet in the fields,” so to speak, would go a long way in improving our legislation to better empower rural Ontario to thrive and produce what all of us require.”

Brady feels rural concerns and issues would be dealt with better after lawmakers receive real-life input. As an example, she cited her recent interaction with the Grain Farmers of Ontario. They expressed their concern with farm vehicles now being lumped in with commercial vehicles. Licensing and weight restrictions are creating frustration for farmers—perhaps with direct input from farmers in a permanent agricultural and rural affairs standing committee, this could have been avoided.

Currently, the federal and various provincial, municipal, regional governments have or have had agriculture-focussed standing committees.

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For more information, contact MPP Bobbi Ann Brady at [email protected] or 519-428-0446