Melissa Price (Durack, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I will continue to raise the catastrophic actions of this government which are threatening so many of our proud Western Australian farmers. Of course, I'm referring to the ideological crusade against the live sheep export industry by those opposite.

The Labor Party's determination to ban live sheep exports has nothing to do with animal welfare and everything to do with inner-city perception and the Labor Party's efforts to keep seats away from the Greens party. The reality is that Australia's live sheep export trade leads the world in both quality and animal welfare standards. It is often said that a sheep is more likely to die on any given day on a farm rather than on a ship. The mortality rate in transit is just 0.15 per cent. But this government does not acknowledge that fact, nor the reality that overseas markets will immediately turn to others where animal welfare is not a priority.

Today I want to express the heartache that I've been hearing from thousands of farmers across Western Australia who are united in their opposition to this proposed ban. To cite just one example, Jake, a York farmer, has explained to me that he is worried about the future of his farm and indeed the future of our regional towns in Western Australia. Jake told me that, while for some farmers live export may not even represent a majority of their income, live export can be the difference between surviving and going under. Two years ago, he was able to sell his merino wethers at $140 per head. Today that price is down to just $50 per head. That's staggering enough without even acknowledging the current cost-of-living crisis. With income down, the input costs, from fuel to electricity to equipment, are all trending upwards under this government.

So I ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry: how is this sustainable? How long does this government expect our farmers to stay afloat if their cries for reprieve are ignored? And if the farmers can't afford to keep going, what then for our regional towns? You see, it's the whole sheep industry that is now impacted, not just the live export trade. Labor have been crystal clear that they don't care about the hardship that WA farmers are experiencing. We saw this through their so-called consultation process whereby they sent out representatives to the regions but the fundamental question of whether a phase-out was actually viable was not up for discussion.

We know that it's not just WA farmers who are now suffering. With the domestic market price collapsing in part due to overseas markets losing confidence and the consequential growth in domestic stock, sheep producers over in eastern states are hurting too. Western Australians understand only too well that this government does not listen to us. However, I hope with the impact on other states now that these consequences are reaching close to the Prime Minister, because this will now be starting to impact people on the east coast. If you won't take Western Australia seriously, please take the rest of the country seriously. I'll continue to fight for WA farmers. (Time expired)