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

This is why he's getting riled up—because he knows he went too far. He started by saying he'd promise a review, and then he sat at the kitchen table—he tucked his legs underneath that farm table out there—

Mr Fitzgibbon interjecting—

They did, because you promised them something you could never deliver. That's why people hate politicians—because they go on and tell them what they want to hear. You've got to have the courage, you've got to have the ticker to stand in front of them and tell them the truth. That's why we've acted, and we're putting in place a dairy code of conduct—exactly what the ACCC said. It's coming in next year. This is why it's dangerous that someone from that side could ever be ag minister—because there are contracts in place; there are intricacies to this market that you do not play with, and you do not undertake actions that are rash, that would actually have perverse outcomes. You didn't even think about that, nor care. It was all about trying to make a cheap point—preying on these people's misery, a cruel hoax that you knew you could never deliver. And the ACCC, in that report on 30 April, had already said that the only way to deliver this was through a mandatory code of conduct. Lo and behold, we're delivering it, and it will come in in a responsible and methodical way that will deliver.

But then we went further. We went to put in place a market platform that gives greater market opportunities for our farmers. We announced this during the election campaign. It would have been great if the opposition spokesman had been able to see that—and for many other commodities. Let me explain it to you in simplistic terms. I want to keep it with you, because you weren't here. The member for Hunter was hidden under that rock, so he probably didn't hear a lot that was happening during the campaign. The member for Hunter was hiding. He was in exile all right. Let me tell you what happened. It's like with many other commodities, like cotton, like grains: you're able to hedge a product. These are the types of things that give a market opportunity.

Mr Fitzgibbon interjecting—

Yes, you were hidden under that rock; you were hidden, my friend. But we made sure that we gave them real options—sensible policy that would be long-lasting and sustainable, not just to get us through an election cycle. That's what real leadership is: to stand up and be honest, and to back your farmers with something that's real. But let me go further on what we've been able to achieve in the last 16 months: the Craik review into biosecurity—an extra $313 million into biosecurity. We are delivering all 42 recommendations, lock, stock and barrel. If we do not undertake serious measures around biosecurity, I can assure you that we will lose our clean green image.

Let me make sure that we understand how important that is to us all—I'm losing my breath; I've got so much to talk about here—but let me just go back. While he has got this new-found courage, it's funny that when we were talking about milk—and I will go back to milk for a minute, because it is important—I do recall the member for Hunter standing here chastising me about attacking supermarkets for not giving dairy farmers an extra 10c. He absolutely lost it over the fact that I would have the temerity to go out there and attack supermarkets. I stand by farmers, not big corporates. The member for Hunter was tucked underneath the board tables of Coles and Woolworths—he was hidden with them—and I went and had conversations. Let me tell you, it took courage to stand up to those supermarkets and have the conversation. And do you know what? We broke the back of $1-a-litre milk because I had the courage to stand up to them. We had the courage on this side, and we've made sure that that's now giving real returns.

But we've gone further. We want to talk about the APVMA. We believe in decentralisation. This side believes in regional and rural Australia. It believes that they can do it just as well as people in Canberra or anywhere else. If we empower them and undertake to invest in them, lo and behold, business will follow. When we took over, the APVMA was getting 34 per cent of applications done on time. The APVMA's performance is now at over 70 per cent, and we have decentralised to Armidale. I was in Armidale and I sat there. I actually went there to listen rather than to stand in Canberra in the bubble—as you're slowly learning after the election. I listened to the people who have moved there. In fact, I met one of the senior scientists, who was in Geneva before coming to Armidale. She made the comment to me that if this had not been decentralised to Armidale and had stayed in Canberra she would not have come back to Australia to work for the APVMA. She believed in the lifestyle and she also believed in the strategy of being close to a university. This is about making sure we get results. This is a strategic move that has delivered.

Let me tell you also about ag visas. We have changed around the policies in respect of bringing in foreign workers to help us get the food off those vines and off those trees when we need to. But do you know what? The responsibility of the Australian government is first and foremost to keep its people safe. You make sure that if you make any changes to the visa system you do it in a sensible and methodical way where you do not put Australian security at risk. The Prime Minister made it very clear at the NFF council meeting when he said that we would work towards it but we would have to do it in a sensible, methodical way. That is why we take the advice of specialists in intelligence and in defence who can tell us how we can do this. This is the reality of good government. It's not about trying to politicise for a cheap, tawdry point. These are achievements.

One of my greatest achievements as the agriculture minister over 16 months, of which I'm proud, is that I took female government board representation from 37 per cent to 47 per cent. I was able to right the wrong of the past, and it's one of my greatest achievements. I can be proud of it. (Time expired)

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