Media Release

Federal Member for Kennedy Bob Katter today praised his KAP colleague and State Member for Dalrymple Shane Knuth after the State Government reversed an earlier decision which would have seen four Queensland Correctional Centres switch from sourcing fresh milk from Queensland dairy farmers - to importing ‘treated’ UHT milk from New Zealand.

Mr Knuth last week complained straight to the newly appointed Corrections Minister after it was discovered that those prisons in line for the switch included Lotus Glen Correctional Centre in Mr Knuth’s electorate of Dalrymple – and which is also in one of Australia’s most significant milk producing areas.

Mr Katter said today the original decision was quite simply, unbelievable, but that it was only Mr Knuth’s intervention that had caused the State Government to back-pedal on the decision.

“This was an outrageous decision to import “treated” milk from New Zealand instead of buying it from a local dairy factory 30 minutes down the road.

“This is a continuation of the lowest tender, free market policies that are putting Australia down so low that we’ll never be able to find our way up.

“But Shane Knuth’s intervention has saved the day here for our local dairy farmers,” Mr Katter said.

Mr Katter also criticised Labor’s Union Corrections Spokesperson, who had earlier defended the switch on the basis of cost.