The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday edition that it seems unlikely that a technology policy could unite iPhone users and tractor drivers in common cause, but there is one: the right to repair. A Globe editorial says that this is the term for a growing pro-consumer movement that says if you own something, you ought to be able to fix it. Ottawa has taken some good early steps to create such a right; it must do more, and the provinces should join in, to benefit both consumers and businesses. Whether manufacturers have planned it this way or not -- a matter of some debate -- this technological shift has radically changed the nature of problems that can break a machine and the tools required to fix them. For consumers, this means some problems can only be solved by bringing a device back to a manufacturer. With few or no options from independent repair shops, consumers face higher repair bills and pressure to buy new devices. The same thing can happen in agriculture. Ian Boxall, president of a farmer lobby group, said farmers need to be able to do their own repair work. Any time taken to drive out to a dealership in another city, or to wait for a delivery of a replacement part, is money lost by leaving crops to rot.