Queensland Agricultural Minister Mark Furner is set to embark on a “tick roadshow” later this month in the first step towards a review of the current biosecurity management.
But no further details have been provided about when the meetings will occur in the next 30 days.
During an Estimates hearing last Wednesday, Minister Furner said Biosecurity Queensland would join forces with AgForce to conduct a travelling roadshow starting in August.
“...to engage directly with producers along the tick line, with the eventually aim of conducting a fact based review of the tick line,” he told the group.
When questioned further by the Queensland Country Life on Tuesday, Minister Furner failed to give additional details surrounding dates and locations of the tour.
The future of tick line management has attracted major debate recently as the two year review for the current framework approached in July.
Since the biosecurity tick line framework commenced in July 2016, there were 180 infested properties in the cattle tick free zone.
Two years later Biosecurity Queensland reports only 94 of those original cases are still on the infested register.
However, it’s understood that 85 new cases were also added.
Minister Furner said the current tick line arrangements had been welcomed by many producers, as they represented cost saving through greater flexibility around managing stock movements.
“The system is the same as the previous third-party provider system,” he said.
“In addition, we now allow livestock owners to complete the inspection and clearance processes at places other than traditional clearing dips.”
But, Liberal National Party opposition Agriculture spokesman and grazier, Tony Perrett said recent tick infestations highlighted worrying gaps in Biosecurity Queensland’s approach to policing the current tick line.
He accused the minister of keeping graziers in the dark.
“If the minister is fair dinkum about having a tick line then it’s about time he made sure it’s being properly policed and resourced,” he said.
“Tick lines should be bread and butter business for the Ag Department, but under this city-centric Labor government the real issues facing our agriculture sector are ignored.”
Lucy Kinbacher
Raised on a cattle property at Biggenden, Lucy Kinbacher has spent 10 years working across metropolitan, regional and rural publications in both Queensland and NSW. Lucy has been the editor of the Queensland Country Life and North Queensland Register since 2021.
Raised on a cattle property at Biggenden, Lucy Kinbacher has spent 10 years working across metropolitan, regional and rural publications in both Queensland and NSW. Lucy has been the editor of the Queensland Country Life and North Queensland Register since 2021.
