Nickolas Varvaris (Barton, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Agriculture. Will the minister update the House on important changes being made to foreign purchases of agricultural land?

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for his question. It is great hearing from someone from St George. Obviously we both have an association with St George—his in Sydney and mine in western Queensland. It is also great to hear from someone from an urban electorate who has a real concern that we have the proper controls over the application for the purchase of Australian land. We all know that at the very centre, the very essence, of what we are as a nation is the land we stand on—and there is so much that we have to do to make sure that we respect that. We must make sure that there is a real pride in the ownership of that land; we must make sure that there is real dignity in the return people get off that land; and we must make sure that there is a real diligence in the management. It is in diligence of the management which—

Mr Bowen interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for McMahon.

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

has shown that we have listened to the Australian people. The Australian people, whether that is in Sydney, or Melbourne, or Brisbane, want to make sure that there are better controls and better oversight on the purchase of our most precious asset: our land. That is why we listened to the Australian people and when they asked for the changes we gave them the changes—moving it down from $252 million down to $15 million. But there is an alternate policy.

Mr Fitzgibbon interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Hunter.

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is good when the Labor Party come up with a policy—and they have an alternate policy. They are not going to move it down; they are going to move it up to $1,000 million. This has not gone over very well. Even in the city, in Sydney, people are congratulating us that we have done what they asked for, that we have taken the steps for proper control. This is at—

Mr Fitzgibbon interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Hunter will desist.

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

complete odds to a policy of the Australian Labor Party, which now stands by their promise of Senator Wong and the shadow minister for agriculture to move the—

Mr Fitzgibbon interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Hunter!

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

limit up to $1 billion. So someone could purchase at $500 an acre a property more than three times the size of the Australian Capital Territory and not have to go before the Foreign Investment Review Board. That is an absurdity—a total and utter absurdity. But I am glad that we now have something to talk about in agriculture. It is the only policy they have got. They are going to fix up the debt by selling off the whole joint. That is how they are going to do it, and I am looking forward to them proudly standing behind that policy at every opportunity. But not one of them has gone out. It is dead silence behind their policy of having a billion-dollar limit before any person has to go to the Foreign Investment Review Board over the sale of Australia's most fundamental asset—our land. Maybe the Leader of the Opposition will stand up today and stand behind his party's policy. Why the silence? Is there something that you are ashamed of?