Bill to protect local farmers coming - PM By David Williams, Freelance Writer PRIME MINISTER P.J. Patterson has promised legislative support for the local agricultural sector, announcing that a draft Safeguard Bill for the sector is to be tabled when Parliament reconvenes in September. The Bill which is expected to be passed by year end, will make use of existing World Trade Organisation (WTO) provisions as a short-term measure to provide temporary protection to local producers where there is a threat of serious injury to domestic production. In announcing the aim of the Bill at yesterday's climax of the 49th annual Denbigh Agricultural and Industrial Show, Mr. Patterson stressed that it would provide only short-term protection in specific circumstances. "Let me warn clearly that it will only give us a short breathing spell in which to improve our scale of productive efficiency. It will not allow us to revert to the days of high costs and uneconomic production," he said. He therefore called on farmers to continue efforts towards increasing productivity and improving marketing in the face of increased import competition. Jamaicans turned out in their hundreds to view the exhibits over the three days of the event. Dairy farmer Adeeb Azan from Riversdale, St. Catherine walked away as this year's Champion Farmer and Clarendonian, Bridgette Williams was crowned Farm Queen.
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