Media Release

6 July 2015: KAP Federal Leader and Member for Kennedy Bob Katter MP has today channeled Jerry Maguire and called on the Federal Government to ‘Show Me the Money’ when it comes to the Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper.

The White Paper released on the weekend by the Agricultural Minister re-announces a number of previously announced items and throws another $2.75 billion into the failed Drought Concessional Loans scheme.

Mr Katter welcomes the Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper’s commitment of $500 million over 4 years for Water Infrastructure with $450 million of that set aside for construction and $200 million earmarked for Northern Australia. Mr Katter wants the money to flow into construction now, not in a few years’ time through another study.

“The first obvious problem is Show me the Money! We are only interested in this if it takes us to a hard commercial proposal for an operator,” Mr Katter said.

Mr Katter remains critical of the Government’s failed Drought Concessional Loans scheme where in one State it is reported that not one farmer has successfully accessed the program.

“We have pointed out again and again and again that this does not work. The current loan structure costs tax payers money and achieves nothing.

“Probably another half dozen stations have foreclosed, or are in the process of foreclosing in the last month alone.

“So whilst the media are running on their heavyweight programs 60 Minutes and Sunday Night the trauma of foreclosures; the Government is running around throwing money uselessly. This quiet frankly further enrages rural Australia.

“A simple Reconstruction Board costs the tax payer nothing. It has worked for 100 years.

“The banks are out there ruthlessly foreclosing. This is a $2.75 billion assistance for the banks, not assistance for the farmers.

“Farmers don’t want more debt they cannot service. More debt with a foreclosure guillotine hanging at the end of it and which in any case they cannot afford.

“They want to reconstruct their existing debt.

“We thank Minister Joyce for his efforts but the two things we really need are a Reconstruction Board and a disputes resolution tribunal in the areas of collective bargaining for the farmers. But even those are only stop gap measures,” Mr Katter said.

Mr Katter has pointed out the glaring areas that go untouched in the Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper – the value of the AUD, the supermarket giants, and the unfair playing field for our farmers. The White Paper does provide funding for an ACCC Commissioner dedicated to agriculture.

“The removal of the propping up the AUD by interest rates still nearly 1000 per cent higher than the rest of the world and the burning issue of the supermarket giants goes unresolved. The ACCC Commissioner will look at the problem. But we need to deal with the problem which is the supermarket giant’s 90% control of the market.

“The third issue is the competitive disadvantage. Every farmer in the world gets 40% from the Government, we only get 4%. Try competing on that ‘level playing field’.

“We don’t want to condemn the Minister for trying, he is dealing with his own party – the Nationals - free market fundamentalists and a Cabinet, that if possible, is even worse,” Mr Katter said.

more information or a comment from Bob Katter please contact 0418 840 243

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