With the Federal Election locked in for 21 May, the National Farmers Federation has outlined its five key demands for both parties.
“Despite the challenges of the past three years, farmers have continued to be the engine of the nation: keeping supermarket shelves stocked, jobs in place, and batting above our average when it comes to GDP contribution,” said Fiona Simson, NFF President.
“In 2022, agriculture and the bush is on a trajectory of growth. Now is the time to supercharge this momentum with strategic government investment and policy.”
Outlined as the NFF’s Time to Thrive – Stronger Regions for all Australians, its demands have been sent to all major parties, seeking a response. Its demands are:
- establishing 20 Regional Development Precincts to plan for sustainable growth with $4.1 billion dedicated to precincts and freight supply chains
- creating a $2 billion fund to reward land managers who improve the health of their landscape
- fast-tracking agricultural visas discussions with ten partner nations to attract and train more workers in Australia
- establishing a $5 billion rural telecommunications fund to improve connectivity for remote Australians
- protecting farmers from unfair practices through reformed competition laws
“Our plan is ambitious but deservedly so. Our regions account for about 40 per cent of the nation’s total economic output, and 90pc of the daily food we consume is produced by our farmers,” Ms. Simson noted.
Notably, farm gate values are tipped to exceed $80 billion in the next year. It closes in on the NFF’s target of $100 billion by 2030.
It will be interesting to see how major parties respond and commit to these demands outlined by the NFF and its members.
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