John Cobb (Calare, National Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Food Security) Share this | Hansard source

I seek leave to amend the motion in terms circulated to honourable members in the chamber.

Leave granted.

I move:

That this House:

(1)

require the responsible Minister to commission the Australian Bureau of Statistics, with the assistance of ABARE, to compile data on the foreign ownership of agricultural land and agribusiness, which should:

(a)

show the level of foreign ownership for Australia as a whole, by state and for key regions, and for particular agribusinesses;

(b)

include a biennial formal statistical release; and

(c)

recommend what steps need to be taken to establish and maintain a public register of foreign ownership of agricultural land and agribusiness;

(2)

require the responsible Minister to task the Productivity Commission, subject to its work program, on the receipt of the initial ABS data, to:

(a)

review foreign ownership of agricultural land (subject to the outcome of 1(a)) and agribusiness, with an evaluation of its contribution to the national interest in terms of economic development, food and water security, and agricultural sustainability; and

(b)

inform how the foreign investment policy on agricultural land (subject to the outcome of 1(a)) and agribusiness should be modified, if necessary, to ensure the optimum outcomes for economic development and the national interest, including whether the Government needs to:

(i)

lower the threshold for notification to the Foreign Investment Review Board for rural land and agribusiness acquisitions;

(ii)

introduce a national interest test for food security; and

(iii)

ensure that foreign entities do not establish monopoly or near monopoly positions in key sectors; and

(3)

commit to establishing:

(a)

a Joint Parliamentary Committee to consider the information provided by ABS, ABARE and the Productivity Commission, taking into account public concern in this area

These amendments are more about procedure and practical ability of the department and the various bodies that are tasked with the jobs in ABS, ABARE, et cetera—for example, requiring a biennial instead of an annual formal statistical release. It is more about the ability of the department or departments to do their job rather than changing in any substantial way the intent of the motion.

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