Hunt Blog
Newsletter
But He Needs Your Support
New
Federal Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce has taken up the cudgels at first drop for Rural and Regional
Australia announcing a score of
initiatives to address some of the structural problems besetting our rural
industries.
On 9
December 2013 Barnaby published the terms of reference for the Agricultural
Competitive White Paper which will provide a much overdue examination of the
measures needed to restore Australia’s rural industries to international
competitiveness.
At
the end of January 2014 following a tour of drought affected areas of
Queensland and north-western New South Wales and meeting with some 400+
concerned farmers in his old home town of St George, Barnaby announced his
determination to bring a drought relief and long-term development and
reconstruction finance package to Federal Cabinet.
The
Rural Debt Reconstruction Working Group who, with others, convened the 31
January 2014 Town Hall meeting in St George presented Barnaby with a Rural
Reconstruction and Development Board proposal that has been enshrined into a
Parliamentary Bill (The Reserve Bank
Amendment (Australian Reconstruction and Development Board) Bill 2013) (the RRDB Bill), which was introduced into Federal
Parliament by Independent Senator Nick Xenophon and Democratic Labour Senator
John Madigan late last year.
The
closing date for submissions about the proposed RRDB Bill was 10 February 2014.
At last count 123 submissions, ranging from submissions by the Reserve Bank of
Australia to Mum and Dad submissions had been received with respect to the RRDB
Bill. These submissions can be viewed at http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Economics/RBA_Amendment_2013/Submissions.
The Need to Make a Noise
Barnaby
Joyce has some runs on the board but a lot more needs to be done. Shortly after
the coalition government came into power in September last year, Barnaby called
on all those that supported his concern about foreign takeovers of prime Australian
agricultural land and infrastructure to help him do something about it by
making a lot of “noise.”
The
“noise” from concerned grain growers
and state and national farming organisations about the proposed foreign
takeover of GrainCorp was loud and unified and Treasurer Joe Hockey heard the
message and blocked the proposed grain Corp takeover by Archer Daniels Midland.
Rowell
Walton and his merry men and women in the Rural Debt Roundtable Working Group
have made a lot of “noise” about the
debt crisis burden which is crippling rural Australia generally and the beef
industry in particular. Indeed, there is an urgent need for long term patient
development and reconstruction finance if Australia’s once proud rural export
industries are to return to an internationally competitive position.
The
Rural Reconstruction and Development Finance “noise” has thus far brought about $420 million Federal emergency
rural debt refinance package, the introduction of the Rural Reconstruction and
Development Board Bill into Federal Parliament and has inspired and given
Barnaby Joyce a basis upon which to take the development finance and the
drought relief proposals to Federal Cabinet.
Rowell
Walton and his merry men and women didn’t sit back and leave it to Peak
Councils to push their debt reconstruction barrow but they got in and led the
way themselves. The National Farmers Federation (NFF ) have now jumped on the
bandwagon and come out publicly in support the Rural Debt Roundtable Working
Group push for Australian rural industries to have the same access to
competitively priced long-term patient reconstruction and development finance
that our overseas competitors enjoy.
The Grass Fed Cattle levy Senate Inquiry
All
those that are concerned about the falling profitability and future
sustainability of Australia’s beef cattle industry also need to make as much “noise” as possible to help Barnaby bring
about the organisational structural changes needed to meet the collective needs
of the beef cattle industry in the second decade of the 21st
century.
The
realities are that in the first instance Canberra will judge the degree of
concern about the grass fed cattle levy structures and systems by the number
and quality of submissions that the Senate Inquiry committee receives. So it is
important that as many concerned grass fed cattle producers lodge a submission,
either by themselves, or in groups, as possible.
To
assist in this regard a group of Concerned Cattle Producers ( the CCP ) have
got together to set up a non-partisan, non-aligned grass fed cattle levy Senate
inquiry information website at http://www.cattlelevysenateinquiryinformation.com/ to assist you to understand
the issues raised by the terms of reference of the grass fed cattle levy Senate
inquiry and to lodge a submission.
The
CCP cattle levy Senate inquiry information website sets out the terms of
reference of the Senate Inquiry together with background information about the
history of the current grass fed cattle industry structures and systems and the
reasons that many, including Barnaby Joyce, feel that the time has come for a
review of those structures and systems to make sure that they are still the
appropriate structures and systems needed to meet the collective needs of grass
fed cattle producers.
The
names and contact details of the CCP members who have committed their time and
energy to ensure that their fellow grass fed cattle producers have an
opportunity to express their views, opinions and concerns to this important
Senate Committee Inquiry are set out on the homepage of http://www.cattlelevysenateinquiryinformation.com/ .
The
CCP cattle levy Senate inquiry information website also contains a pro forma
electronic questionnaire submission (a copy of which is attached to this
newsletter) that grass fed cattle levy payers can access to assist them in
expressing their views to the grass fed cattle Senate committee inquiry.
The
grass fed cattle industry needs your involvement and Barnaby Joyce needs your
support and involvement if he is to bring about the changes needed to ensure
that our great Australian cattle industry returns to profitability and once
again enjoys the position in our rural industries and Australia’s economy that
it held in previous decades and centuries.
If
you are a grass fed cattle levy payer, please make the effort to visit the CCP
information website at http://www.cattlelevysenateinquiryinformation.com/ and lodge your own
submission, or avail yourself of the opportunity to lodge the CCP pro forma
electronic questionnaire submission, with rrt.sen@aph.gov.au.
All
submissions to the grass fed cattle levy Senate enquiry must be lodged by 1
March 2014.
If
you have any queries you can contact any of the CCP members referred to on the
homepage of the CCP website.
Further
information about the history and performance of our current red meat industry
structures and systems can be found at www.huntblog.com.au
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