Coalition rift erupts over agriculture visa

Nationals MPs have accused the Liberals of obstructing and ‘holding up’ a long-awaited agriculture visa.

Nationals MP Damian Drum says the Liberals are ‘holding up’ the visa when ‘we have the Prime Minister’s word’. Picture: AAP

Nationals MPs have accused the Liberals of obstructing and “holding up” a long-awaited agriculture visa, as a fresh spat emerges in the Coalition over the migrant farm worker scheme.

The federal government activated the regulations for the visa program in September but bilateral negotiations with South East Asian nations – led by Foreign Minister Marise Payne – are ongoing. This means farmers have been unable to source foreign workers under the new visa to fill critical labour gaps, despite Agriculture Minister David Littleproud claiming the visa would be “up and running” by Christmas.

Outgoing Victorian Nationals MP Damian Drum – the party’s chief whip – said the Liberals were “holding up” the visa and called for the bilateral agreements to be ­finalised. “This has to be delivered. We have the Prime Minister’s word,” he told The Australian.

“There seems to be obstruction within the Liberal Party on this and it doesn’t make any sense to those of us who live in the regions and are facing this issue on a daily basis. ”

Mr Drum – who holds the rural Victorian seat of Nicholls – said he was hopeful the bilateral negotiations would be completed before next year’s federal election but warned it would have a “detrimental” impact on Nationals and rural Liberal MPs if it was unresolved before polling day.

“We need the Liberal Party to get out of the way on this and let’s get these bilateral conversations under way because we have many countries that are very keen to partner up with Australia when it comes to a labour force,” he said. “Some people in the Liberal Party are trying to walk back on the promises that they gave.”

The farm visa has long been opposed by some Liberal MPs due to its potential to clash with the strategically important Pacific Labour Scheme. It was first pushed by the Nationals in 2018 and resulted in a cabinet spat in the early days of the Morrison government.

In June, Scott Morrison agreed to implement the visa in return for the Nationals’ support of an in-principle free-trade deal with Britain, which waived the requirement for British backpackers to complete 88 days of farm work if they wanted to stay in Australia for two years. The Nationals argued the agriculture visa was essential to compensate for labour shortages that would be exacerbated by scrapping the requirement.

Mr Littleproud told The Australian the “only impediment” for the visa was the completion of the bilateral agreements.

“Nationals members have expressed to me that they would expect those to be successfully finalised very soon,” the Agriculture Minister said.

Victorian Nationals MP Anne Webster said she still had no “clarity” about when the first phase of the visa would begin.

“It is very frustrating because as a representative of my community I’d like to be able to give them some assurance that we will have these workers,” she said.

“Producers have been desperately waiting for the agriculture visa to start.”

Ms Webster said amid drought, pandemic-fuelled work shortages and the China trade dispute, the visa was the “bright light”.

“It’s incredibly important that it happens and that it happens in a timely way,” she said.

The visa has faced mounting pressure from the unions, with the ACTU sounding warnings that the program would entrench documented worker exploitation and wage theft in the industry.

A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson said the recruitment of workers under the visa would begin once bilateral negotiations were complete.