GrainGrowers, Media Release, 9 May 2023
The federal budget has delivered a mixed result for rural Australia, with GrainGrowers expressing disappointment and calling for additional work in a number of areas.
GrainGrowers said there was not a lot to celebrate in the budget and it would be considering the details carefully over the coming days.
While welcoming the steadfast commitment to maintaining Fuel Tax Credits and the extra attention to childcare, GrainGrowers said the government had missed a range of valuable investment opportunities for grain growers.
GrainGrowers CEO Shona Gawel said as a powerhouse commodity, Australian growers deserved more investment in areas including biosecurity, infrastructure investment and taxation.
Ms Gawel said the decision to impose a biosecurity protection levy on producers was disappointing, as farmers were not risk creators and could now be facing undue costs.
“The Agriculture Minister, Murray Watt only recently endorsed an independent report by the Invasive Species Council that suggested the people who create the biosecurity risks need to pay their fair share.”
“The imposition of what the government believes is a “modest levy” is neither fair or well directed and we would respectfully ask the government to reconsider such a short-sighted decision.”
Ms Gawel said road funding was another disappointment and while some funding had been allocated it was a drop in the ocean compared to what was needed.
Recent flooding and high rainfall have caused unprecedented damage to rural roads across the nation.
“While we understand the financial constraints facing the Government, decimated rural roads are driving up inflation and putting regional drivers at risk.”
“With climate change increasing, we need urgent investment to ensure the resilience of road network.”
“Rural roads must not be left behind in Australia’s $120 billion infrastructure investment pipeline”.
Ms Gawel said the decision to reduce the instant asset write-off to $20,000 – capped at $10m turnover – was a glass half empty approach.
“In the feedback we’ve received from growers, they have been looking to government to provide a solid incentive to invest in the machinery required to gain efficiencies and improve productivity. Given the persistent delays and global shortages in accessing machinery, an extension would have enabled farmers to receive the current machinery and assets on order.”
Ms Gawel said additional funding for childcare was a welcome step forward.
“This funding addresses a range of issues affecting growers concerning childcare access. While it may not appear to be an obvious issue for the grains industry, preparation is well underway for a Rural and Regional Childcare Roundtable to work through the issues and consider the next steps,” she said.
