Joyce attacks Labor’s “crude politicisation” of dairy crisis

Mr Joyce was responding to a request yesterday from the State minister - which his office learned about initially via media reporting, instead of formal communication channels - demanding added assistance for embattled milk producers.

The letter claimed to be working with both sides of politics, under government caretaker government, leading into the July 2 election, to respond to the crisis but My Joyce rejected that assertion.

“I am going to call the Victorian Labor government’s latest letter for what it is – a crude politicisation of dairy assistance,” he said.

“So much for bi-partisanship.”

The federal Agriculture Minister has taken a more measured response to the crisis putting an assistance package together that’s resulted from talks with core stakeholder groups and he says they understand who’s actually playing politics.

Mr Joyce said two weeks ago he wrote to the Victorian Agriculture Minister offering to provide $555 million in Dairy Recovery Concessional Loans of which $30 million was now available, to support Victorian dairy farmers.

He said that immediate and interim assistance offer was made under caretaker conventions - and following consultation with the federal Opposition - which indicated Labor would neither delay nor stand in the way of the Coalition providing assistance to dairy farmers.

“It is therefore disappointing to see the Victorian Labor Party playing politics with much needed dairy assistance,” he said.

“The Victorian Labor government has twice written to me on the assistance package but each time has failed to indicate whether they will deliver the loans or not.

“While they dither, farmers are waiting.

“To put the offer in context, the Commonwealth is making the money available and is taking all the financial risk.

“All the Victorian government has to do is process the applications for funding.

“The Commonwealth has already paid the Victorian Government to deliver $30 million in concessional loans to farmers this year.

“I understand so far Victoria has processed less than half that amount.

“There is nothing stopping the Victorian government from agreeing to deliver these Dairy Recovery Concessional Loans but their political belligerence.”

Mr Joyce said he referred to his Department the questions raised by the Victorian government on aspects of future delivery of the dairy assistance package.

“These queries can be considered by my department which will be in position to brief an incoming government quickly following the election,” he said.

“The Coalition has made available a package of up to $579 million in assistance for dairy farmers hit by retrospective farm gate milk prices.

“The Victorian government has offered to fund a grand total of zero dollars in on-farm assistance for Victoria’s dairy farmers.

“The question for the Victorian Labor Government is whether they will agree to deliver Dairy Recovery Concessional Loans to Victorian dairy farmers, or not.

“Dairy farmers are waiting - they know I am not the Minister holding it up.”

Ms Pulford’s letter said the retrospective price cuts to dairy farmers was “especially significant” for her State which accounts for approximately 80 per cent of Australia’s dairy product exports, worth about $2.3 billion in 2014-15, and contains about 70pc of the nation’s dairy farmers.

“As a result, Victorian families and businesses are bearing the largest impact of the milk price downturn,” she said.

Ms Pulford said her suggested “critical improvements” in the federal government’s dairy package resulted from concerns relayed to her during personal consultations with dairy farmers, small businesses and local councils.

She called for; an increase in Rural Financial Counselling services of $410,000; a review of the interest rates for the dairy loans scheme to push for a cheaper rate; another $750,000 to support administration of the first tranche of scheme ($30m); to allocate 70pc of the remaining $500m to Victoria post October 2016; and expanding loan eligibility, beyond Murray Goulburn and Fonterra suppliers.

Ms Pulford also demanded special assistance and access to finance for young farmers and share farmers with minimal or highly geared assets.

She said agreement to the “fair and measured” demands would “improve” the Commonwealth’s initial support offer and complement the Victorian government’s $11.4m support package.

Earlier in the week, Shadow Agriculture Minister Joel Fitzgibbon issued a media statement attacking Mr Joyce for failing to mention the dairy crisis when appearing on the ABC’s Q&A program, from Tamworth Monday night.

Mr Fitzgibbon said thousands of dairy farmers across southern Australia are facing huge debts and have question marks hanging over their businesses after Murray Goulburn and Fonterra slashed milk prices in April and “Labor stands with these farmers and their communities”.

“We have called on the Murray Goulburn Board to return retained profits and investor dividends back to the Cooperative members in the form of a higher farm-gate price,” he said.

“The Board has the power to put cash quickly into the pockets of dairy farmers and Barnaby Joyce should be putting pressure on it to do so.

“Instead, he has been resolutely silent on the one practical measure that would make a difference to dairy farmers right now.

“He has also refused to join Labor in committing to review the use of 'claw-back' provisions in agricultural commodity contracts, which sparked the current crisis.

“The Minister for Agriculture needs to stand up for Australia’s dairy farmers instead of hiding behind his hastily cobbled together ‘assistance package’ and staying silent.”

Mr Joyce faced his electoral opponent Tony Windsor during Monday’s ABC broadcast and Mr Fitzgibbon, his portfolio opponent, who was included in Ms Pulford’s correspondence.

However, no questions about the dairy crisis were raised during the Q&A program.

But it did raise questions about the widening rural city divide and associated threats for agriculture.

Mr Fitzgibbon said he believe young people - children in the capital cities - were losing “the connection with food”.

“I doubt many of them would be able to tell you what 'agriculture' means,” he said.

“It's a word they're not all that familiar with.

“I think we need to build that bridge to raise that awareness.”

Mr Fitzgibbon said for five minutes he was thinking about changing the Department of Agriculture’s name to the Department of Food and Fibre, to better describe “what we do”.

“We produce things to eat or to manufacture,” he said.

“I think a small thing like that might actually help build that bridge but it's probably a dangerous play for me at this point in time.

“(But) we need to educate people in the capital cities about where their food comes from, who grows their food, who produces their food, who manufactures their food.

“It seems like a simple thing, but we are losing it.”