MP Barlow reintroduces farm trespassing bill

The bill calls for amendments to animal health legislation

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

The Conservative ag critic has reintroduced a bill in the House of Commons designed to protect Canadian farms.

John Barlow, the Alberta MP for Foothills, tabled Bill C-275 on May 30.

The timing of the bill “is very fitting with what we have seen across Canada with the spread of avian influenza, the possibility of diseases like African swine fever, and what we have gone through it in my riding with BSE,” he said in Ottawa on Tuesday. “These show us how important it is to protect biosecurity on our farms and ensure that those who may endanger our farms and our farm families are held accountable for those actions, which is why I am tabling this amendment to the Health of Animals Act.”

The bill would make it an offence for a person to enter onto a livestock farm without permission.

Individuals who break the law could face a summary conviction of up to six months in jail and a fine up to $50,000.

Companies who disobey the law could face fines up to $500,000.

Barlow introduced a similar bill during the previous session of Parliament.

Bill C-205 received support from Conservative, NDP and Bloc MPs at its second reading.

Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau was among those to vote against the bill.

Multiple ag groups also voiced support for the bill.

But Bill C-205 didn’t make the committee stage because of the summer 2021 election call.