Hanson highlights Minister McKenzie dairy industry conflict of interest
MEDIA RELEASE
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson says Agriculture Minister Bridget McKenzie has a conflict of interest that might be preventing her dealing promptly with the new dairy industry code of conduct.
Senator Hanson has been pushing for the introduction of the code, which will, among other things, set a fair farm gate price for milk and help shore up the viability of Australia’s dairy farms and the industry generally.
However, she noted that Minister McKenzie’s home state Victoria was the only state in which its industry opposed the introduction of the code.
Victoria has more dairy farms than all the other states combined. It is the only state in which farmers don’t have contracts with milk processors due to strong competition between processors. Victoria also exports considerable quantities of milk to other states.
Senator McKenzie is up for re-election at the next federal election, due in 2022.
“It’s a great concern to me that the livelihoods of dairy farmers, who are desperately waiting for some farm gate price support for their milk, might be waiting in vain due to some political reason,” Senator Hanson said.
“I hope it’s not true, but with the years of delays and Government slackness in introducing this important document, I am now starting to wonder.”
The need for the code was raised in 2014 by Australian Dairy Council and Dairy Australia. The Government in September 2018 assured it was working toward introducing the code, however, Minister McKenzie earlier this week told the Senate the draft code was only now about to progress to its third round of community consultation.
The Government has recently suggested an introduction date of June next year; however, Senator Hanson wants it introduced ASAP – by the end of the year at the latest.
“We can get the draft out, have a few weeks of consultation, and have the code introduced and in action by the end of the year,” Senator Hanson said. “I urge the Government – just do it!”
Senator Hanson has for years highlighted poor farm gate prices, crushing contracts, rising power and water costs making dairy farming unviable, and probably forcing Australia toward dependence on imported milk.
The issue came to a head on the weekend with her ultimatum that One Nation would stop voting in support of non-critical government business until it agreed to reregulate the dairy industry.
Senator Hanson asked in the Senate on Monday: “Why has the government waited until there has been a mass exodus of dairy farmers before realising a code of practice is required?”
Minister McKenzie: “That’s actually not true. Our government has been taking steps to stand by dairy farmers and the industry more broadly over many many years… getting this code in place is an important commitment we have made. There’s no hold up, whatsoever, on our side, to get this in place, to give the farmers the security they need”.
However, Senator Hanson noted that she had raised concerns about the industry in a Notice of Motion in the Senate on 13 September 2018, including requests to “provide immediate additional financial support to dairy farmers who cannot feed their herds”, and to “regulate the price of milk per litre paid by processors to dairy farmers to ensure a viable dairy industry”.
At the time, the Government responded: “The government strongly supports Australia’s dairy farmers and the dairy industry and acknowledges that many are doing it tough at present…. The government will work to address the significant imbalance in bargaining power and marketing information for dairy farmers through the code and particularly through its dispute resolution mechanism and other means where suitable”.
Queensland Labor Senator Anthony Chisholm added at the time: “Whilst there are many points Labor could provide strong support for, sadly there are other points that have an eye more to an election, rather than to assisting farmers…. Labor has been working closely with the dairy industry.”
“This is total BS from both the Government, which has done nothing substantial in years, and from Labor; they’re just playing the political game at the expense of farmers’ lives and livelihoods because they don’t like One Nation,” Senator Hanson said.
“It’ll be interesting to see what excuses they come up with next for doing next-to-nothing.”
Senator Hanson noted that milk production in Australia at its peak in 2000 was 12-billion litres annually, but fell to 9.5-billion litres last year and to 8.8-billion this year. She is pushing for a regulated farm gate price.
Link to 2018 Notice of Motion exchange: https://www.openaustralia.org.au/senate/?id=2018-09-13.57.1
Link to video of Monday’s Senate Question Time exchange: https://bit.ly/2B8JEhH
