Ken O'Dowd (Flynn, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

() (): When drought hits, as widespread and severe as it is in New South Wales and Queensland, there are repercussions. When production goes down, costs go up. We export 75 per cent of what we produce and there are contracts in place in a lot of the cases. Drought also impacts on these exports and that is another side issue. The real issue is looking out for the farmers who exist now and who have toiled the land for many, many years. Farmers are slugged now with the drought and with huge freight costs. Barley is up around $320 a tonne and moving upwards, lupins are $400 a tonne, and hay is $300 a tonne. This all impacts on freight cost and road networks, as trucks come from the south, fortunately, to help their brothers in the north. Australia's biggest domestic demand has not been like this for the last 10 years. Exports are essential to our growth. I cannot understand the state government in cutting the water from the Boyne River to the farmer along there. They can get that water out of Wivenhoe Dam, but they choose to cut the water from the farmers. I can't understand why they do it. (Time expired)