Bernie Ripoll (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. How is climate change affecting farmers in different parts of the nation and how important is it for local experiences to be represented in responding to these challenges?

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Oxley for the question. We have already had a number of references in question time today to the different impacts of climate change in different parts of the nation. Whilst you can never pinpoint a single weather event and say it is due to climate change, it is true that the trend lines provide you with opportunities to see how events which have always occurred to some extent become more severe and occur more regularly—whether it be examples around the current drought, whether it be last year’s heatwaves across South Australia and parts of Victoria or whether it be the increased severity of major weather events in the north of our country. For this reason the research into the responses needs to take account of regional differences. That is why the soil carbon work that we are doing under Australia’s Farming Future, which was referred to earlier by the Prime Minister, deals with soils as far south as the electorates of Lyons, Franklin, Bass and Braddon and as far north as the electorates of Maranoa, Dawson and Kennedy.

In the same way, it is important for those local experiences to find their way into discussion here in the parliament. That is why it has been my focus as Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry to meet with the people who work the land on their own land. I have conducted many of those visits with members opposite and members behind me in different regional seats. You need those experiences to be brought here to the parliament, whether they be from the massive pastoral properties in the north or from the smaller cattle and dairy operations in areas like Pine Rivers. The importance of an area like Pine Rivers receiving local representation was made to the parliament last year in a wonderful statement by the shadow minister for health and member for Dickson.

Andrew Southcott (Boothby, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment Participation, Training and Sport) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, on relevance: the question was about climate change and local responses. The minister is diverging very widely—

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Boothby will resume his seat. I have listened carefully and I remind the minister that he needs to respond to the question.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Referring to the part of the question about local experiences being represented here, I think the best example of that was a statement late last year by the member for Dickson. He said:

But the point is that the people of Pine Rivers deserve somebody who is local, somebody who is interested in representing their own interests, and not somebody who is a seat-hopper …

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, on a point of order: clearly these matters are not within the responsibilities of the minister—they are vastly beyond them. I ask you to cause him to desist from this pathetic display.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will refer his material to the question.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I agree that we should make sure that local experiences like those of the smaller cattle and dairy operations around areas such as Pine Rivers are represented here. That is why I agree entirely with the statement that you should not have somebody ‘deciding to take residence in Pine Rivers because they do not believe they can win the seat which they are currently representing any longer’.

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, on a point of order: you have just asked the minister to relate his answer to the question he was asked. He continues with this pathetic display, and I ask him—

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat. The minister will refer his response to the question and he will bring his response to a conclusion quickly.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Dickson has told the people of Dickson what he thinks of them and does not want to stick around to hear what they now think of him. The member for Moncrieff might have dropped to 93, but the member for Dickson is not on the Gold Coast list at all.

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.