Aaron Violi (Casey, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Let's be very clear: they can talk a big game, but this government is not delivering for exporters in our country. There's no money for this grant program in the 2024-25 financial year and they've cut $61 million out of the program since they came to government. And to show they don't understand business, the economy or how this country works, they've now decided that Austrade, a bureaucracy, is the best place to tell businesses how to operate and where to export. I've spent 10 years working in food manufacturing, including exporting into Asia, and no-one knows better than a company where they need to export to, where their markets are and where their opportunities are—not a bureaucracy. It shows that this government is out of touch at the time of a cost-of-living crisis, when business is struggling more than ever. They continue to make the wrong decisions and make it harder and harder for businesses to operate.

Wineries are a core part of my community and they need these export market grants to extend into new areas.

They're frustrated, and they've been reaching out to me—

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