Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I would say to the honourable gentleman interjecting that the problem of fertiliser prices did not begin on 24 November last year. For those opposite who are seeking to say that for 12 years they were out there at the forefront of rearrangements of the global fertiliser market to ensure a better deal for Australian farmers, I do not think that he is being fair dinkum about it. I do not think the honourable member for Maranoa—who I have got a bit of a soft spot for—believes in his heart of hearts that it is a fair dinkum question. He knows as well as I do that the fertiliser price has been a problem for a long, long time.

This government will do what it can within its powers to assist farmers who are dealing with this challenge. It is a real problem in terms of on-farm costs. It is something that the minister has been engaged in dialogue with the NFF and others on. Let me assure the House that any practical measures that can be undertaken by government to draw these pressures off working farmers who are dealing not only with the ravages of—

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