Burke should go over quarantine comments |
5th March, 2010 |
The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Tony Burke, must recant or resign after telling this week’s Outlook Conference that Australia used “bogus quarantine claims as a cover for protectionism”.
The Leader of The Nationals and Shadow Minister for Trade, Warren Truss, said Mr Burke’s comments were not only false but will seriously undermine Australia’s defence of its science-based import risk assessment process.
When Australia goes before the World Trade Organisation in a few weeks to defend the conditions imposed on the entry of New Zealand apples into Australia, the very first words Australia’s critics will use are those of our own Agriculture Minister, that Australia uses quarantine as a form of protectionism.
“Farmers need a minister who will stand up for them in Cabinet – not one who is waging a relentless war against the very people he is appointed to support.
“Mr Burke has presided over massive cuts to the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, farm training programs, rural research and overseas market representation. His Department is now just a puppet of Penny Wong’s Climate Change monolith.
“Mr Burke has played fast and loose with Australia’s clean and green reputation for farm products. He has slashed $35.8 million from Australia’s quarantine and biosecurity programs, sacking 125 quarantine officers and massively reducing quarantine inspections of imported products. Budget cuts to Customs mean up to seven million less consignments arriving in Australia are to be inspected every year.
“He supported the introduction of live foot and mouth disease into Australia for experimental purposes, approved the import of Philippines bananas and is about to agree to the import of Chinese apples.
“He argued in support of lifting the ban on beef imports from countries that have had Mad Cow Disease and has handed the issue over to Food Standards Australia New Zealand (where New Zealand has an equal say with the Australian Government).
“Mr Burke’s appalling statement at the Outlook Conference this week signals an end to a quarantine policy based on sound science and the confirmation of an ‘open door’ approach to the world’s pests and diseases. Labor is prepared to trade off Australia’s prized pest and disease-free farm industries for any cheap import or trade deal.
“It is hard enough to farm in Australia as it is with an unsympathetic Labor Government but if our farmers also have to contend with the import of a new range of the world’s worst pests and diseases, their lot will be intolerable.
“Minister Burke, like every single Labor Cabinet Minister, lives in a capital city, but Mr Burke also has the dubious honour of representing in Parliament less people dependent upon farming, fisheries and forestry that any other Member of Parliament. It shows!
“If Mr Burke will not stand up for keeping pests and diseases out of Australia, he must resign,” Mr Truss said.
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