Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade. Would the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade inform the House of the success of Australia’s cotton exports, particularly from my electorate of Maranoa? Are there any impediments to the industry’s export success?

Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Maranoa for his question. The member for Maranoa represents an area that generates significant quantities of cotton exports out of Australia. One of the issues that is most important to the cotton industry is a reliable supply of and access to water. Just to give you an idea of the importance of the export industry that they have grown, this year they have topped $1.1 billion worth of exports of cotton out of Australia. Cotton is now Australia’s seventh-largest agricultural export—

Michael Danby (Melbourne Ports, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Danby interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Melbourne Ports!

Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

and a lot of that would be coming out of the electorate of Maranoa. It is interesting to note where the strongest growth has been. China is now becoming one of Australia’s largest fibre markets for both wool and cotton, because cotton exports to China last financial year rose by a staggering 307 per cent. So just over a half a billion dollars—$506 million—worth of exports of cotton have gone to China, along with exports to Indonesia worth $250 million, and Thailand, $157 million.

As I said, this industry relies very heavily on the reliability of access to water. Many of the state Labor governments are not cognisant of this fact, particularly in Queensland—the member for Maranoa comes from Queensland—where the Beattie Labor government—

Kelvin Thomson (Wills, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Public Accountability and Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Kelvin Thomson interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Wills!

Kelvin Thomson (Wills, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Public Accountability and Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Kelvin Thomson interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Wills is warned!

Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

are proposing to arbitrarily levy a $4 a megalitre water tax on industry in Queensland.

Michael Danby (Melbourne Ports, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Danby interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Melbourne Ports is warned!

Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Cotton Australia has come out and said, and very sensibly so, that irrigators must not be asked to bear the cost of water reform alone. They recognise that they have to share the responsibility, but they should not have to bear it alone—and that is the view of the Beattie Labor government in Queensland. So, whilst the federal coalition government—

Lindsay Tanner (Melbourne, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Tanner interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Melbourne!

Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

has been removing taxes from exports—

Lindsay Tanner (Melbourne, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Tanner interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Melbourne is warned!

Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

with $3 billion worth of taxes taken off the backs of exporters as a result of our tax reform policy a number of years ago, and continuing to reduce the levels of income tax, state Labor governments are lazily increasing taxes on our export industries. This should be an issue in the Queensland election on Saturday, because the Beattie Labor government wants to levy a $4 a megalitre tax on irrigators in Queensland.