Celebrations at Muller Station
More than 260 people gathered at Muller Station in Marlborough recently to celebrate the 2024 Westpac + OsGro Marlborough Farmer of the Year winner.
In what is already looking like a testy outing for B+LNZ has now had added spice with a vote of no confidence being proposed in the ousted chair and the whole board.
Morrison lost his board seat in the southern South Island ward to Geoff Young. Young received 8,777 weighted votes while Morrison received 6,587 votes - a winning margin of 2,190 votes.
Meanwhile, South Otago farmer Hugh Gardyne has put up a late motion moving a vote of no confidence in both Morrison as chair (which is now redundant) and the entire board of B+LNZ for their support of He Waka Eke Noa (HWEN).
Gardyne claims B+LNZ has been distracted from its main purpose "to grow the sheep and beef industries and provide sustainable returns now and for future generations".
In his no confidence motion, Gardyne claims B+LNZ has been distracted from its mandate in a number of ways, including co-producing the HWEN report, allowing the Government to override this report with their own amendments and standing with the Government and signing off on Labour's Emissions Pricing Plan.
Gardyne told Rural News that he'd had confirmation from B+LNZ that the agenda for the AGM has been revised with the deletion of the afternoon farm tour, allowing for more time to consider all the remits and for general business, where his motion will be moved.
"I have been a strong advocate of Beef and Lamb all my farming life, but your patronage of this Labour Government is unprecedented," Gardyne states in his motion.
"Meetings arranged to inform us on HWEN and discuss the Government's response have been straight out lectures, with no time or inclination to listen to any opposing solutions. This is a time of reckoning."
Gardyne accuses B+LNZ of "forsaking its mandate and needing to re-set".
