CEO COMMENT

FEDERAL ELECTION A TEST OF POLICY INSPIRATION

Elections are a show of the power of a democracy. When we look at events across the world, we should cherish our ability to have a say on who should provide leadership.

This is demonstrated within CANEGROWERS, where every member has a right to both nominate and express preference through voting, and on the bigger scale with state and federal elections where candidates put themselves forward for political party preselection and become the subject of the popular vote.

In the lead up to this year's federal election, we have seen the Federal Government use the Budget as a springboard into a campaign. In turn, we can use the budget to provide insight into the way in which the Government looks at the importance of agriculture. Advocacy organisations such as CANEGROWERS need to hone our skills and look at our needs in the context of what governments and politicians can deliver.

A government essentially has two levers to pull - policies that can either inhibit or enable industry growth and funding that can stimulate investment, innovation and research.

In looking back through the history of Australian Government actions you can see the shift in both policy and funding priorities. The Government in 2020/21 spent over one third of its expenditure on social security and welfare, 15% on health, and about the same on education and defence - approximately 6.5% of expenditure. Where does agriculture and water come in? Less than 1% of Federal expenditure goes to agriculture and water. It is a crude but legitimate comparison to point out that expenditure on fuel, energy and industry (mining, manufacturing and construction) represents over 2% of its total expenditure.

So what do we want from governments? Perhaps the most important thing the Australian Government does for agriculture is the significant co-investment in our research and development organisations. This is a world class system of industry and public investment in excess of three quarters of a billion dollars. Equally the place of Government investment in natural disaster response is also very clear. Noting that the Federal Government response to COVID-19 has cost almost as much as they spend on education and defence combined, we can see the budget needs to be prepared for unexpected shocks and therefore every dollar needs a purpose.

As the demands on government expenditure grow, our expectation of action leans more towards policy than finances. We need stability in programs on agricultural research, development and innovation and we have an expectation that this investment should grow as the sector grows. On the policy front, we want enabling policies that encourage not inhibit growth. Like many sectors of the economy, we want government to either help us grow or get out of our way to allow us to grow.

Whether the recent Federal Budget provides an election campaign springboard will be the subject of political speculation. Whether the policies of an aspiring Federal Government and their local candidates can inspire our sector to see them as our future leaders is the critical test that must be faced at the ballot box. •