Bob McMullan (Fraser, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Federal/State Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Transport and Regional Services. I refer the minister to the statement he made on 12 January 2007 relating to the government’s review of wheat exporting arrangements. I also refer him to the statement this morning by the member for O’Connor, who seems to have been unavoidably detained elsewhere, on the National Party’s attitude to the future of our wheat marketing arrangements. He said:

We can spell corruption, they don’t seem to be able to do so.

Further, he said:

If that’s not a front for the corrupt company AWB, I don’t know what is …

What is the Deputy Prime Minister’s response to these statements?

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

Order! In calling the Deputy Prime Minister, he is not required to comment on a statement by another member, particularly a backbencher. However, I think there was a first part to that question.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

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

Order! Members are holding up their own question time. I think the first part of the question was in order. I call the Deputy Prime Minister to answer that part of the question.

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

I thank the member for Fraser for his question. I think all members would be well aware that there has been significant commentary and debate about this particular issue for quite a number of months, much of it quite erroneous commentary from the Labor Party. Whilst given the opportunity to comment on the decision the government has taken—

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 is warned!

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

In making a decision about the future arrangements for the Australian wheat industry, we have taken a decision in the interests of the most important people in this debate, and that is the Australian wheat growers. This is their product that they produce. This is a multibillion dollar industry. They have a significant position in the world wheat market and it is in their interests that we have taken these decisions.

The Prime Minister has just announced a set of arrangements that will be put in place to best serve Australian wheat growers and the Australian economy well into the future. We are putting in place arrangements that have been asked for by the industry. We have consulted widely. I do not know of another issue that our government have dealt with where we have consulted as widely or as extensively with industry—with all the players and the stakeholders in the industry—and done it very transparently and out in the open, I might add. After that level of consultation and discussion with industry stakeholders, growers and farm leaders, we have come to this conclusion. It is now up to the industry to establish the entity they want to manage the marketing of the pool in the future. We will support them in establishing that. I will make the point that there has been an enormous amount of discussion and commentary across the nation on this issue. We have now put forward a plan that we believe will have the majority support of growers, a plan that is designed in their best interests.