Farmers’ escape plan ‘will shift population’

A controversial proposal from the peak body for farmers to offer ‘exit packages’ for farming families has been attacked by MPs.

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, left, speaks to agriculture spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon in the lower house on Wednesday. Picture: AAP

A controversial proposal from the peak body for farmers to offer “exit packages” for farming families has been attacked by MPs from both major parties, as key stakeholders search for new ways to help Aust­ralians living in drought.

The Coalition’s backbench agriculture committee is due to meet on Thursday to discuss the National Farmers Federation’s six recommendations to the federal government, following a backlash over its call to deliver exit packages for those “looking to exit farming after assessment of their long-term viability”.

“We’ve been trying to stop region­al population shift for a very long time, why would you want to encourage it?” Nationals MP Keith Pitt said.

“When they leave it’s not just them as individuals, it is their families­, their kids who leave school. You don’t just walk away from your business — you walk away from your home, a farm that might be multigenerational.”

Mr Pitt said the best thing that could be done was to drive money and jobs to those regions through infrastructure projects. “The best thing we can do is drive cash flow into those regional flows,’’ he said.

“Whether it’s through infrastructure, fast-tracking approvals for projects submitted to the Depar­tment of Environment, (or) building bridges and roads, we need to ensure we drive money and jobs into those communities as quickly as possible.”

Opposition agriculture spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon also accused the NFF of declaring “it’s all too hard”.

“I don’t accept that. Exit payments­ were rejected by the Productivity Commission back in 2009,” Mr Fitzgibbon told Sky News. “I’m happy for them to come back into a broader conversation but you don’t raise that issue at this point in time.”

Scott Morrison, who met with the NFF on Tuesday, told parliament there was “enormous overlap” between the measures the government was putting in place and those the NFF had recommended, but did not say if exit packages should be on the table.

“Obviously on things like rate relief, which they have raised, that is a matter for state and territory governments,’’ the Prime Minister said.

“One of the things the state and territory governments are also responsibl­e for are freight and fodder­ subsidies, which I note the NFF did not call to be increased during the course of this drought.”

NFF chief executive Tony Mahar said the exit strategy proposal was essentially about reducing the anxiety, stress and devastation people were dealing with, and giving them options.

Mr Mahar said the federation understood there could be a large proportion of farmers who did not want to leave the land but it was worth considering what could be put in place to make that decision easier.

“What essentially it’s about is reducing anxiety and stress and the devastation people are dealing with,” Mr Mahar told Sky News.

“It’s giving them options to say: ‘If you want to leave your business, let’s look at your current situation’.

“It’s all about assistance, it’s all about having the conversation and what role is there for government in that space.”

The NFF said it understood that its national drought policy, released­ separately to the six recom­mendations, would be discussed at a meeting of agriculture ministers next week.