Malcolm Roberts (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Hansard source

As a servant to the people of Queensland and Australia, I rise to support the Future Drought Fund (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2019 despite substantial reservations. Australia's hardworking farmers are suffering desperately in this drought, an entirely natural phenomenon that is part of our country—but that doesn't make it any less difficult for the farmers. Drought support for the land is not just about infrastructure, because there are many on-farm measures that can be taken. This bill places the attention where it needs to be: on the soil. Droughtproofing Australia is in part about regenerating degraded soil to retain more water and, from that, to use less fertiliser and chemicals. The ultimate goal is profitable, stable and sustainable agriculture. Regenerative agriculture, known as regen ag for short, stores water back in the soil. It captures and stores carbon, a natural element that is essential for all life on earth and that is in every living cell of every living organism. I want to compliment the One Nation member for the state seat of Mirani in Queensland for the work he has been doing with farmers, and will continue to do, on this matter.

After pushing for many years, One Nation is now very pleased to see soil regeneration being included in this bill, and we will hold the government accountable to that clearly stated intent. Yet, this is not a $5 billion drought bill. The bill provides $100 million each year to be put into a special fund for grants to farmers. But here is the problem: that money does not start to flow until 1 July 2020. In fact, the Future Drought Fund has a full 12 months after 1 July 2020 to put all of the money into that account. This scheme may not be in full swing until mid-2021 and, after processing grant applications, it could be 2022 before farmers can get their hands on their money. So, why did Senator Cormann earlier today take to Twitter soon after announcing this bill to declare that the bill would support famers and drought affected communities straight away, when that is not the case?

The bill provides for fund management expenses to be taken from the special account. Let me say that again: the bill provides for fund management expenses to be taken from the special fund account. Many questions remain around how much will be taken out of that $100 million for expenses in managing the fund. The bill lists page after page of expenses, including the cost of the Future Drought Fund as well as the special fund. One Nation is concerned that this is not a $5 billion bill and it's not a $100 million bill; rather, this bill may well turn out to offer funds in a trickle, not the flood that is needed. In many ways, this seems to be yet another Liberal facade that's going to be sold. One Nation will hold this government accountable to the promises it is making with this bill to provide drought relief.

We go further though. Why does the government continue to ignore the need for substantial nation building—for future-building and infrastructure projects that could droughtproof much of our nation, particularly our state of Queensland and our neighbouring state of New South Wales? That is a cost-effective and seemingly affordable project that would prevent forever the cost of recurring flood damage.

We go further, and ask the government to address Liberal and Labor policies and actions that are crippling Australia's productive capacity. In southern and Central Queensland, farmers are not planting fodder because the electricity prices are absurdly and artificially high. In a drought, farmers are not planting fodder. Electricity prices are high due to unfounded and dishonest energy policies complying with the UN's Paris pseudo agreement and various UN policies and advices. There is a drought, yet farmers are not planting fodder.

After listen to the loony and antihuman Greens who falsely claim that droughts are due to hydrocarbon fuels, I must address their falsities. They have never, never provided the hard data for their claim and they contradict the empirical scientific evidence that proves hydrocarbon fuels do not and cannot affect climate. The UN initiated this lie, the Greens push it and the Labour-Liberal duopoly drive it in policy, aiming to get Greens preferences. The Greens, I repeat again, have never provided data as proof for their absurd claim.

Banks are also crucifying farmers. That brings them to the edge, and then you get a drought and they go over the edge. Farmers are crippled by banks that have unfettered oligopoly powers.

Let's take another Labor-Liberal policy. How can farmers survive the Howard Liberal government that colluded first in 1996 with the then Borbidge National Party government, and then in 1998 with the Beattie Labor Queensland government and the Carr Labor New South Wales government to steal farmers' properties rights as a way of complying with the UN's Kyoto Protocol? That was repeatedly stated by the then Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, on behalf of his government and echoed and confirmed by Bob Carr and Mr Peter Beattie. I have been calling on the federal government to comply with section 51(xxxi) of the national Constitution and either restore farmers' stolen property rights or compensate them in just terms for the theft—restoration or compensation.

I want to single out Mr Dan McDonald; his lovely wife, Katrina; and their children, James, Ebony and Reece. They are taking on the whole of the Queensland government by standing up for their right to clear their land to provide mulga for their cattle that are starving. They bought that property near Charleville in south-western Queensland particularly because it had mulga and could be cleared, because that then provides natural drought proofing, and yet he's not allowed to clear the land now. He has lost his property rights as a result of Liberal and Labor governments at federal and state levels.

Finally, the support from farmers has been slow to come. While wanting faster delivery, we are nonetheless pleased that farmers will be getting support sometime in the next three years. We urge the government to get out and really listen across our wonderful nation and then change its energy and water policies while building vital drought-proofing infrastructure to restore Australia's productive capacity. That is what we in Pauline Hanson's One Nation advocate for: restoring our country's productive capacity.