David Littleproud (Maranoa, National Party, Minister for Water Resources, Drought, Rural Finance, Natural Disaster and Emergency Management) Share this | Hansard source

It's amazing how you can get a new lease of life after a near-death political experience. You get this courage, you come out from under your rock and you decide that you are going to stand up and stand be for something after six years of doing nothing but being a lapdog to the policies of a Labor Party that that doesn't care about regional and rural Australia. Lo and behold, he has found a voice! It is a big voice! It took a near-death experience, and the National Party is coming for you. Let me tell you, we came very, very close. The Nats are coming because we have a delivery. Let me tell you, it's because we believe in agriculture and we believe in what agriculture stands for.

Let me tell you about what agriculture has done. We have gone from a $34 billion industry to an over $60 billion industry in eight years. Let me tell you why we do get ups and downs. It's a thing called the weather. Those opposite don't understand that. We are on a trajectory to get to a $100 billion industry by 2030. That is because of the environment that we put around the agricultural sector. We put a big framework around that yesterday. We put in place a future drought fund that will go to $5 billion, paying $100 million a year. Those opposite had to be brought kicking and screaming to this.

In October they decided to politicise the misery of Australian farmers and voted no. That is the most disgraceful act I've ever seen in this parliament. To politicise their misery is absolutely disgraceful. It wasn't until you were towelled up on 18 May and you had an epiphany, underneath that rock you've been hiding under, that you had to come out and you had to finally be part of the conversation.

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