Shadow Minister for Agriculture, John Cobb writes:
.
The Rudd Government’s second budget is not only plunging the nation into $220 billion of accumulated deficit, it is compromising our farmers’ ability to feed and clothe the nation.
I am shocked the Rudd Government had targeted Agriculture to pay for its reckless spending, with a massive $908.234 million cut to the Departments budget next year.
The Agriculture Minister has gutted his own budget by 32%. Make no mistake this is a horror budget for agriculture.
Minister Burke should hang his head in shame – he has proven to be no friend of Agriculture.
Agriculture was the only bright light in our economy and the only sector to record any growth in the last quarter and has now been gutted by the Rudd Government.
It was the height of hypocrisy for the Minister for Agriculture, Tony Burke to be swanning around Europe as an observer to the G8 Agriculture Minister’s meeting two weeks ago where he claimed in a media release;
“Australia has a major role to play in meeting the global food shortage and boosting global food security … We believe investment in agricultural research will be essential.” Mr Burke said.
Farmers are already being forced to produce more with less, in particular less water and less arable land, and without increasing public expenditure too dramatically increase productivity there was the very real possibility of Australia becoming a net importer of food at a time the worlds population is set to double within the next thirty years.
I am now convinced this vindictive Rudd Government has cut the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC) because it had the temerity to tell the truth in a recent report by RIRDC which highlighted the heavy burden the Rudd Government emissions trading scheme would have on the profitability and productivity of Australia’s agricultural industries.
Whilst I support overseas aid, it is concerning that the Rudd Government has announced it will be spending more on overseas food aid and research ($464 million) whilst slashing research at home to pay for it.
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Have your Say!
May 14, 2009 at 3:37 pm
Isn’t it interesting that a viewpoint from around the other side of the planet is so revealing? Someone with no axe to grind politically here, can see it for what it is… With reference to the video of the bird flying in front of the truck and the U Tube hits, I hope the AGMATES publishing of this WSJ link multiplies the hits on that page and shows the world and those Aussies who might need some objectivity that from our goldfish bowl, that we aren’t seeing or appreciating what is happening to us, under the guise of fiscal conservatism…
What really happened in the budget has already been noted by the experts, a nothing budget, the only substantial figure is the record deficit number! Taking almost a billion dollars from the ONLY profitable and productive industry in the country tells the story AND THE INTENT of this government better than any other statistic could!
Ray Jamieson
May 14, 2009 at 1:28 pm
Revealing article Jeff - pity the ABC wouldn’t talk about it as much Mathew John’s activiites 7 years ago – the ABC is in the gutter.
May 14, 2009 at 12:51 pm
Hi Nicola Raymond,
Welcome to the ‘wonderful world’ of modern Socialism. Or another form of ‘cargo cultism’, were they just sit on top of a mountain and wait for the great Gods to deliver.
See how the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) sees our PM and his government
May 14, 2009 at 12:08 pm
As I have heard before: “What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is about the end of any nation. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.”