Matt Burnell (Spence, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Once again, we are confronted in this place with an opposition focused only on believing its own hype. This coalition are totally convinced that nobody knows about agriculture except for them, totally convinced that being on this side of the House removes you from the lived experience of Australian agriculture. In fact, the member for Barker made that point himself before question time today. That sentiment is offensively wrong, and those opposite should dispel that notion rather than use it to score political points. Let me demonstrate why.

Referring to the earlier comments of the member for Barker, I was also born in a regional community. I also grew up on a farm in Sunraysia. I also know, to quote the member for Barker, what 'blood, sweat and tears' go into the work of farming families. I watched my parents pour their very hearts and souls into our family farm while raising me and my two sisters. It's physically and emotionally draining work. I lived that experience that the member for Barker spoke of, and I'm proud of it too.

I remember clearly when we had our last farm, our vineyard. I'd have to go off to school in the morning, come home, my father would come in and look after my two sisters, and I'd have to go out on the tractor and work the property, just to make sure we could keep on top of our day-to-day requirements. During the middle of harvest, we would get up early in the morning, unwrap all of the dried fruit, rake it out before heading off to school, rinse and repeat every single day during the harvest, just to make sure that we made ends meet. I know what hard work is. I've lived those experiences all too often, and I'm proud of it too—extremely proud.

I was on the phone just hours ago, just before question time, speaking to growers in my electorate, discussing the concerns that they're experiencing. For those that don't know the electorate of Spence, it's a peri-urban seat, and we have the largest undercover cropping in the Southern Hemisphere. We produce around one-third of the state's fresh produce. I'm extremely proud of what we grow in my area, so it's hugely offensive that the member for Barker would insinuate that I am working against farmers in this country and that I don't know what they're going through. It is absolutely disgusting that the member for Barker would even attempt to make that point, not just because it's completely separate from reality but because I share the same lived experience as him. It's even worse that his colleagues would try to back it in with a statement like this.

This kind of born-to-rule rhetoric from the coalition when it comes to agriculture has become all too familiar in Australian political discourse and it's incredibly disappointing because all that talk does nothing to actually improve livelihoods on farms in this country. Instead, that perception tries to weaponise Australian agriculture as a tool to fill a Liberal-National ballot box. That agriculture sector deserves so much more respect than it gets from those opposite. A Labor government will always show that respect, take farmers seriously and work with them to produce positive outcomes. That's why we are investing more than a billion dollars in new biosecurity funding, to help ensure that our farmers can remain free of disruption and continue to operate effectively, as our nation leads the world in biosecurity. Those opposite would have instead persisted with the $100 million drain they placed on that funding while in power, which this government fixed—despite knowing agriculture better than everyone else.

Our respect for farmers is why we've opened the doors to a multitude of export markets: in cotton, barley, oaten hay—and especially wine, given the foreign policy failure of those opposite, which brought winemakers to their knees in 2020. This government has corrected that failure, getting rid of the tariffs in China, with $142 million of wine exported to China in May alone as a result. We're making farmers more resistant to climate in the years to come, to ensure their sustainability. The coalition would rather weaponise our future for their own nuclear ends. We're also scrutinising Australia's food security, taking the necessary steps to ensure supply to the most precious of resources, the Australian people.

Of course, those opposite know all of this already because, just by virtue of being themselves, they know everything! Perhaps they aren't quite sure on the resources sector—I'm yet to hear a member state they were born in a copper mine and then use that to justify their point of view. I'm happy to help those opposite on this front, too. Our last budget was the most significant investment in resources in a generation, including the $17.6 billion production tax incentive to help secure a future made in Australia.

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