Victoria’s Agriculture Minister to head to southwest drought zone

Ros Spence has confirmed she will see southwest Victoria’s green drought in person, as frustration grows over assistance.

Victoria’s Agriculture Minister will visit parched southwest Victoria in the coming weeks following calls from farmers that she see the green drought in person.

Ros Spence confirmed she will make the trek to the freeze-dried Western District, although a date and location are yet to be confirmed.

“No I haven’t been on-site. I, of course, have been talking to many people,” the minister told ABC radio.

“I do intend to go down there. The Rural Assistance Commissioner is heading down next week for a tour of the area.

“Unfortunately, I can’t join him as parliament is sitting. After he completes that, he’ll brief me on his tour findings and then I will head down after that.”

A meeting of farmers and other concerned residents was held in Hamilton last month, with frustrations aired about the lack of action from Agriculture Victoria and the state government.

Ms Spence said she understood the trying times that primary producers faced this winter.

“There’s no doubt they’re frustrated and I appreciate that,” she said.

“This is a really terrible time for farmers in that area. I’m glad that Agriculture Victoria went, they briefed me on the Hamilton forum after they returned and there’s no doubt there’s a lot of frustration.

“That’s why the Rural Assistance Commissioner will head down, I will head down, it’s important to see and hear directly from people who are having a really tough time at the moment.”

When asked if the Minister should have visited sooner, she told ABC radio: “I don’t want to be looking in the rear-view mirror.

“I am going down there (to southwest Victoria) and I know Ag Vic have been working closely. I also appreciate farmers would like more assistance quicker, but we will continue working with them.”

EARLIER THIS WEEK

Ms Spence was a notable omission in Hamilton at the weekend, when the town hosted the annual two-day Sheepvention Rural Expo, which is often attended by the sitting agriculture minister.

When asked whether the minister’s calendar included a trip to visit affected farmers, Ms Spence’s office deferred to Agriculture Victoria.

The department said it was “continuing to monitor and assess seasonal conditions with a focus on southwest Victoria and has tailored its services accordingly to support farmers”.

Opposition agriculture spokeswoman Emma Kealy said some form of formal drought acknowledgment was needed from the state government, even if it preferred not to use the term “declaration”.

The Lowan MP’s electorate covers a significant slab of freeze-dried southwest Victoria, with the Coleraine and Casterton districts particularly parched.

“There’s no doubt there’s a green drought and there needs to be an acknowledgment of this drought from government for a range of reasons,” Ms Kealy said.

“If they don’t want to call it a drought declaration, fine – call it a drought acknowledgment or a drought zone or whatever wording they prefer. Because it will mean that all the key players — councils, banks, government bodies — are on the same page.”

Dairy lobby groups in particular are calling on Ms Spence’s office to initiate support for affected businesses via the federal government’s Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements.

The cost sharing agreement is activated by a state or territory government following a natural disaster to help with urgent financial assistance.

But the call is expected to go unheeded if the Victorian government follows what is now a longstanding approach to see drought conditions as a normal part of Australia’s climate and a risk farmers are expected to manage independently.

Last week the federal government released a consultation draft of its latest drought plan, the overarching theme of which is to equip farmers to manage droughts and build resilience.

But a summary of submissions to the new plan reveal the level of uncertainty around drought funding since “drought declarations”, officially known as Exceptional Circumstances areas, were axed in 2012.

Among the recurring themes were: “When will the government step in? What are the trigger points for extra support? Need to know what programs may be rolled out and when.”

But the National Farmers’ Federation has supported the federal government’s “three-pronged approach” outlined in the new plan focusing on preparation, management and recovery.

NFF president David Jochinke said the old Exceptional Circumstances policy was flawed and inequitable.

“While some states still retain the drought declaration lever, the former federal Exceptional Circumstances policy was fraught with issues, namely for relying on lines on a map,” Mr Jochinke said.

Nationals deputy leader Perin Davey said the Coalition created the $5 billion Future Drought Fund in 2018 to move away from drought declarations to invest in climate focused resilience and preparedness activities.

“Droughts happen and the drought declarations were, you wait and then swing in after the fact and try and help people, whereas we wanted to be ahead of the game,” Ms Davey said.