Bush Summit 2019: Pressure on Labor to back Coalition’s Building Australia Fund

Pressure continues to mount on Labor and Anthony Albanese to back Scott Morrison’s plan to roll the Building Australia fund into the new scheme after they already stopped the Future Drought Fund earning almost $67 million in interest by refusing.

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Labor has already stopped the Future Drought Fund earning almost $67 million in interest by refusing last year to back legislation to set it up.

Pressure is continuing to mount on Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, Labor and  the crossbench to back Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s plan to roll the Building Australia Fund into the new scheme.

Labor on Monday night pushed for the vote on the funding to be delayed a further day so that caucus could consider its position on the bill but this bid was defeated.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison plans to roll the Building Australia Fund into the new scheme. Picture: Kym Smith

Labor leader Anthony Albanese has already cost the Future Drought Fund earning almost $67 million in interest. Picture Kym Smith

The Daily Telegraph understands one option is for the ALP to use the same approach taken with tax cuts in the last parliamentary sitting week — to wave the bill through after arguing against it.

Mr Albanese has firmly opposed repurposing infrastructure money to the drought fund, revealing at last week’s Daily Telegraph Bush Summit in Dubbo that he will support “any amount” of drought funding but not when it is siphoned from infrastructure.

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The government wants to transfer $3.9 billion in uncommitted funds from the Building Australia Fund. Labor voted against this proposal last year — a position Mr Albanese has taken again.

In the time that has lapsed, Budget papers show that interest earnings on the drought fund would have totalled $66.9 million.

The Telegraph has been told the drought scheme would have higher returns than the Building Australia Fund, which is held mainly in cash and bonds.

Agriculture Minister David Littleproud said people in drought affected areas want leadership, not politics. Picture Kym Smith

Agriculture Minister David Littleproud told Sky News Labor was “politicising” farmers’ suffering, and that the money from the Building Australia Fund is not being used.

“Those people (in drought-affected areas) want leadership, they don’t want politics,” Mr Littleproud said.

Mr Albanese has repeatedly said that he will fund drought measures but called on the government to find the money from somewhere else.

Labor agriculture spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon raised concerns the fund wouldn’t kick in for another year and over how the money would be spent.

“We still don’t know what the government is going to spend the money on — there’s been no detail on that whatsoever,” Mr Fitzgibbon told the ABC.

Originally published as Bush Summit 2019: Pressure on Labor to back Coalition’s Building Australia Fund