Prime Minister
Connecting With Regional Australia
You know, one of the first calls I made when I became Prime Minister just over a year ago was to Fiona.
I was pretty honest. I said, look: I might not know one end of a sheep from the other. I might have more expertise with the plate than the paddock. But I know how important our farmers are.
I want to listen to them. I want to learn from them. And I want to walk with them.
Before I’d even sworn in my Cabinet, I was on a plane up to Quilpie to listen to Annabel and Steve Tully on their property Bunginderry in western Queensland! The Tully family has been there since the 1850s and is still there.
I went up there as a suburban boy from Sydney.
It wasn’t the first time I had been in such places. But what I saw and what I heard has stayed with me as I prepared and set the course for our drought response.
While I saw the ravages of the drought and the toughness of life on the land, I also saw the optimism of the people living that life. Their resilience and hardiness. Their hope and courage. And the strength of their close-knit communities across the generations.
Since then I’ve continued to make a priority of listening to the stories of so many more – in places like Dubbo in central NSW and Stanthorpe in southeast Queensland and Burnie in northwest Tassie.
They’re not just growers and graziers. They’re scientists, innovators and entrepreneurs. They work with cutting-edge technology. They study weather patterns and adapt to shifting global markets. They are the frontline of conservation and land management.
That’s why our farmers and graziers are amongst the best in the world.
Australian agricultural producers have a bright future.
They produce more than 90 per cent of our domestic food. Few countries can boast that.
And this supports hundreds of thousands of local jobs. And generates tens of billions of dollars in exports for our nation.
This industry has a strength in its diversity - the size of our continent means that different parts of regional Australia will be experiencing different growing and trading environments than other parts of our country.
It means even with drought, this past year, agriculture contributed $58 billion to our economy.
Regional Australia is a vital part of Australia’s economic landscape. And that is why we are now bringing together our plan to ensure our agricultural sector becomes a $100 billion sector by 2030.
This plan is focused on ensuring that our farmers have the tools they need to capitalise when times are good, and the hand-up they need to get through the tough times.
Right now, our immediate focus and priority is on dealing with and responding to the devastating drought.
Following the National Drought Summit we held a year ago, we have been rolling out the national drought response plan that was produced from that Summit, with the strong endorsement and support of the NFF.
And we have been doing so consistent with the revised National Agreement with the States and Territories on drought that set out clear responsibilities between each level of Government.
Under the agreement, the Commonwealth is responsible for looking after our farmers through the Farm Household Allowance, the Future Drought Fund (to enhance drought preparedness and resilience) and providing incentives for preparedness through taxation concessions, Farm Management Deposit Scheme and concessional loans.
States and Territories are responsible for animal welfare and land management, including through transport subsidies for fodder and water, and capacity building programs to improve business skills.
No drought response plan can make it rain. Nor can any drought response make life as it was when the rain used to fall. Droughts are hard and take an enormous toll, as this drought continues to.
Our job is to seek to support, sustain and build resilience in the face of this awful drought. This will not mean that rural and regional communities will be relieved of all the awful burdens of drought, nor will it mean that farming and grazing families, and those in the towns also impacted, will not have to make hard decisions about their futures.
This includes, as it always does, farmers and graziers deciding to choose a different life. Only they can decide this for themselves. Our job is to help them make the best decision for them and their families future.
And there will not always be agreement about what the right responses are. There is often disagreement, including within rural communities themselves about appropriate responses. This is why it is important to listen.
Anyone promising you different outcomes, simplistic solutions or creating expectations of unrealistic outcomes, is not being honest with you. They are leading you on, and making your burden even harder to carry. I won’t do that. I will listen, speak honestly and take all actions we can to ensure our efforts are both practical and effective.
So far we have committed more than $7 billion in measures at the federal level. While the biggest component of this is the Future Drought Fund, it is also important to note that around an additional $300 million was spent last year, with the same planned again this year and next year also.
It’s either already out the door, going out the door or budgeted to go out the door in real spending to support our drought response plan.
Our drought response plan is clear, and it has three pillars - immediate action for farmers and graziers, support for the wider rural communities, and long-term resilience and preparedness.
Our plan has also been informed through the extensive consultation, feedback and advice from our former Coordinator-General for Drought, Major General Stephen Day, earlier work of Barnaby Joyce as the Drought Envoy.
First, in the here and now, we’re looking after our farming families.
In particular, the Farm Household Allowance is providing much-needed money to farming families – over the four years of payment households receive around $105,000 to put food on the table, fuel in the car, and for essentials like clothing.
Last year $114 million was spent on the allowance, supporting about 6,500 families, more than three times the $33 million the year before.
FHA is for all farmers in hardship, including drought.
We recently conducted an independent review of the allowance to see how it could still be improved.
So we have moved to make it a 4 in 10 year payment, relaxed the assessment rules to better reflect how farm businesses are run and lifted the threshold for off farm income and assets to ensure those farming and grazing families taking action to help themselves are not penalised for their efforts.
And we continue to simplify the application process.
This week I’ll be introducing the first package of legislative changes to improve FHA.
And our approach is not to set and forget – with the drought continuing, we will continue to listen and refine our approach and provide assistance that’s needed when it’s needed.
We’ve also put more rural financial counsellors to work to help farmers with financial planning and help them make well-informed decisions about their futures.
I was chatting with one of them in Dalby on Queensland’s Darling Downs last month. And I can tell you that they’ve been a Godsend in drought-affected areas.
We’ve invested $25 million to help our farmers combat pests and weeds; $2.7 million to improve regional weather and climate guides; and $77.2 million for Bureau of Meteorology radars.
We built the National Drought Map - all of your drought data needs are in one place. Where to find mental health support, state drought declared areas and where assistance is available.
We funded the National Farmers’ Federation to develop a new online FarmHub that provides a single, trusted point of access to information and services.
And we have $1 billion available in concessional loans through the Regional Investment Corporation. These loans help farmers prepare for, manage through and recover from drought.
There are $75 million in taxation measures - including accelerated fodder storage asset depreciation.
The Government is also supporting farmers through the $50 million Emergency Water Infrastructure Rebate scheme. Already more than 2,100 farmers have access these rebates.
And recognising the prolonged drought is also taking its toll on permanent horticulture plantings, on 4 October we expanded the rebate to also provide support for de-silting and new bores for growers of permanent plantings like apples, stonefruit, avocadoes and grapes.
But the drought’s impact isn’t only felt on farms.
Spending also dries up in regional towns, threatening the prosperity of local businesses.
That’s why the second pillar of our plan for drought is about community.
We’re stimulating local economies by giving $1 million each to councils in drought-affected areas, and this means over 120 councils, all of whom have shown some signs of drought, can undertake practical projects for their communities.
Like the Dubbo Regional Council that used its funding to improve water supply in Stuart Town, put in shades at the local livestock markets, and install a disability-friendly public toilet in the CBD.
These projects help keep the local economy moving.
Importantly, where possible, these projects are using local labour and local suppliers to ensure the economic benefits are felt locally.
Farmers are among the most resilient people I know; but ongoing drought can hit them hard.
We have to help as much as we can with the mental health issues that accompany this.
So we’re providing $30 million for targeted mental health support in drought-affected areas plus more than $50 million funding for major charities – like The Salvos and Vinnies – to assist rural Australians in desperate need with up to $3,000 in individual support payments.
But our farmers also need to prepare for the future because this drought won’t be the last.
So the third pillar of our strategy is about long-term resilience.
Its centrepiece is the Future Drought Fund that was passed into law in July.
The Fund starts with an initial $3.9 billion investment, growing to $5 billion over the next decade.
This will provide a sustainable source of funding to improve drought resilience and preparedness.
When it does rain we need to make sure we have water storages in place to help drought proof us for the future.
Yesterday, I was at Dungowan Dam near Tamworth where the Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack and the NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and I announced a $1 billion package for major investments in water infrastructure in NSW.
Together, we are spending $650 million to upgrade Wyangala Dam, as well as $480 million for the new Dungowan Dam.
These are great examples of a state government partnering with us to deliver water infrastructure.
I’m pleased the Queensland Government has now also given the green light to Emu Swamp Dam. But I want them to get on and build it.
The local farmers have been pushing for this for a long time – in fact, they’re tipping in $24 million of their own money alongside the $42 million we’ve committed and up to $18.6 million from Queensland.
Reports suggest that water from a new dam could boost farm revenues by up to $75 million every single year.
So it sounds like a good investment to me!
In total, the Federal Government has now committed about $1.5 billion for 21 water projects across Australia.
These projects include:
- Dams, like the Dungowan Dam I announced yesterday - a new 22.5 gigalitre dam;
- Pipelines like the $20 million South West Loddon Rural Water Supply Project in Victoria that will include 88 km of pressurised pipeline to connect the Wimmera-Glenelg system in the west with the Goulburn system in north-central Victoria, 272 km of trunk mains pipeline to provide the core supply system; and 862 km of pipelines to provide access from the trunk mains to individual properties; and
- Irrigation schemes like the $25.27 million project in Scottsdale in Tasmania. This project includes a 9,300 megalitre dam, a pump station, a mini-hydro power station that’s estimated to generate 623 kWh/ML; and, 92 kms of underground pipeline network, delivered under gravity pressure.
And there are still 50 more projects on the table – and we need all the states to get on board.
Much of the potential for growth in agriculture will come from more irrigation.
So making sure we have enough water is essential if agriculture is to become a $100 billion sector.
To make sure we’re building the right infrastructure in the right places at the right time, we’ve set up the National Water Grid Authority.
It began operating this month and will work with the states and territories to develop a national plan for investment in water infrastructure and identify a pipeline of projects.
This will deliver a more coherent approach to water infrastructure across the country.
And it will ensure our investment decisions are based on the best available science. It means having the first national plan for Water Infrastructure and supporting investment in that infrastructure like never before.
Dams and pipes will sustain our farms and our towns - and increasingly, we are going to find them powering our towns and cities as well.
And for those areas for whom the curse of drought was overtaken by the inundation of floods, in North Queensland, they know the swift response that was set in train by our Government to provide them with the confidence to rebuild.
Generations of effort and achievement washed away in 48 hours. How cruel was that? But we have had their backs.
To this end I wish to acknowledge the tremendous efforts of the North Queensland Livestock Industry Recovery Agency, led by the Hon. Shane Stone and all involved in getting that region back on its feet.
While the drought is biting, and floods have decimated herds, the sector remains strong and has a strong future.
Agriculture is a key pillar of the Australian way of life and the economy.
In fact, the total value of our agricultural production is currently almost $60 billion a year.
That’s 50 per cent more than a decade ago, even though we’ve been in drought for much of that time and even though trade tensions have impacted the value of our exports in the past year.
This is a real achievement. But I know we can do even better.
Our vision is for Australia to exceed $100 billion in farm gate output by 2030.
This is a bold vision. But it’s an achievable one. And a vision first outlined by the NFF.
The Agriculture Minister, Bridget McKenzie, will work with industry to develop the Agriculture 2030 plan to help the industry realise its vision.
There are enormous opportunities for our agricultural industries in the years and decades ahead!
The world’s population is expected to be 9.7 billion by 2050 and global demand for food is expected to rise by 54 per cent between now and then.
Much of this growth will come from Asia where the rising middle classes are seeking quality food.
Australian agriculture is well placed to meet this demand.
We have a reputation for quality, safe and sustainable products.
Our trade deals with China, Japan and Korea have already opened up large markets.
And we’re working on more trade deals to provide the best opportunities for our exporters.
Right now, we’re looking to ratify a trade agreement with Indonesia – the world’s 7th largest economy by purchasing power – and this would lower tariffs for producers of grains, beef, dairy and horticulture.
I’m also determined to secure a trade agreement with the European Union.
With over 500 million consumers, the EU is a huge potential market for our agricultural exports.
Many of our products are currently shut out of this market or can only come in in small quantities.
A trade deal would secure greater access for our exports to this $17 trillion market. And it would make a big contribution to the agriculture sector reaching its $100 billion goal by 2030.
And Post-Brexit, there will be a UK trade deal too.
The Government is investing in a range of other policies to help the industry achieve our $100 billion goal.
We’re making new investments in research and development – like a $35 million investment for a new Queensland-based research centre that will help future-proof farmers’ crops from drought.
We’re supporting the adoption of cutting-edge technologies – like drones that provide data on crop management – with the full adoption of digital agriculture potentially yielding $20 billion by 2050.
We’re building roads and rail networks, including inland rail, to help our farmers get their products to markets faster, and we’re removing red tape so it’s easier to transport farm equipment around the country.
We’re tackling the pests and weeds that cost our farmers billions of dollars a year.
We will keep farmers safe from protests and farm invasions through new anti vegan-terrorist laws. They don’t like being called vegan-terrorists, so let me say it again: vegan terrorists.
We’re also working with the industry to make sure it has the skilled workforce it needs.
And we’re improving the management of our soils and native vegetation.
Former Governor-General, Major-General Michael Jeffery has been re-appointed as the National Soils Advocate.
While we have areas of highly fertile soil, overall our soil is poorly structured and affected by salinity.
Our farmers are the stewards of this precious resource.
With around 60 per cent of our land used for agriculture, they are at the forefront of managing this vital asset on behalf of the rest of us.
We must support them in this so agriculture continues to prosper and provide for all Australians.
I made a decision early on to do my best to keep in contact with the families I’ve met in regional Australia.
Having spoken to hundreds of people in our regions over the past fourteen months, the difficult thing I struggle with - is knowing that no matter how hard you work, no matter the passion and diligence, there is so much about agriculture that is outside of our control - but we support each other because that is what we can do.
And with the hope of an optimist we look forward to, for those of us so minded we pray for, and as always together we plan for better days, to secure not just the economic future for our agricultural sector in Australia, but the way of life it has supported since our modern nation began.