Last Tuesday night Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers handed down his third federal budget with a focus on cost-of-living relief. For many in agriculture it is difficult to look past the fact that the largest allocation of funds for the sector is going towards the shutting down an agricultural industry.
After an announcement that the live sheep export trade would be stopped within the next four years, the budget allocated $107 million to support the cancellation of the trade with only half of this allocation going towards producers and the supply chain.
This is the first time in a federal agriculture budget we have seen the inclusion of investment which will ultimately see an industry shut down. This is not an investment in agriculture, quite the opposite. Ongoing rumours referencing a political deal struck with the Animal Justice Party that has underpinned this policy decision is incredibly concerning for industry and for the community who are now seeking answers and calling for transparency on policy decision making at the highest level.
Minimal investment in skills and workforce spending for agriculture is disappointing, particularly during a time when many farmers are citing labour shortages as one of the biggest ongoing pressures impacting their operations.
The budget did, however, contain some positive notes, with $519.1 million to the Future Drought Fund, including $83.2 million over five years to the Farm Business Resilience Program. Only $42.2 million of that $519.1 million allocation was new money, however, with the remainder of the funding being drawn from the FDF itself.
There has also been an allocation of $1.7 billion for road infrastructure, with a welcome focus on enhancing regional roads for safer and more efficient freight movements. This is, of course, an important investment for farmers and regional communities.
Smaller allocations have also been made to support market access, including $2 million to rebuild trade with China and support diversification into other markets, and a $1.5 million spend to improve the labelling of plant-based alternative protein products.
There were also several announcements made regarding emissions reductions, changes to the Australian Carbon Credit Unit scheme and an investment to enable the continuation of the Australian Energy Infrastructure Commissioner. QFF will participate in the Federal Agriculture Minister's Sustainability Summit in Toowoomba this week, where further information on these announcements will be provided.
Long-term investments in agriculture are important not just for farmers but for rural communities and consumers as well. Budget time always sees a focus on the dollar amounts, which are, of course, important, but equally important is the way in which the government works with community and industry in the delivery of these investments and policy settings. QFF will continue to advocate on behalf of Queensland farmers and press for the policy and investment allocations critical to the future of agriculture in this state.
