Interview with Steve Cannane, ABC Radio National Breakfast

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC RADIO NATIONAL BREAKFAST
FRIDAY, 18 JULY 2025

SUBJECTS: National Fire Ant Response Plan, Australia’s biosecurity system and algal bloom in South Australia.

STEVE CANNANE, HOST: Julie Collins is the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and joins us now. Welcome back to Radio National Breakfast.

JULIE COLLINS, MINISTER FOR AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FORESTRY: Thanks for having me on this morning and good morning to your listeners today.

CANNANE: Thank you. David Littleproud and the Invasive Species Council both say the government is not doing nearly enough to address the fire ants issue. What do you say to that criticism?

COLLINS: Well, what I say to that is that we have been working closely with the state and territory governments in relation to the red imported fire ants outbreak, particularly in South East Queensland. What I would say is that Australia has been quite successful in terms of trying to contain the red imported fire ants compared to how other countries are dealing with it. We have managed to contain the spread of it compared to other countries and this investment that we have made is in stark contrast to how we found the investments into the red imported fire ants when we came to office.

CANNANE: Ok. How can you say you've contained it when it spread to central Queensland and parts of NSW?

COLLINS: Well, we are getting outbreaks. Obviously biosecurity is everybody's responsibility. And part of the program has been the public awareness campaign and making sure that people understand what they are. And I have seen some of those events myself, you know, educating the public type events so that people can detect them early and so that we can get onto it early. I mean, we're talking about $600 million in the cost sharing arrangement with states and territories. And that's the way that these types of biosecurity incursions are treated across the country. They are jointly funded, it's a national cost sharing arrangement with states and territories. So, it's almost $600 million over the next four years in terms of the containment of red imported fire ants in Australia.

CANNANE: The National Fire Ant Response Plan for 2023-2027 is currently cabinet in confidence and not public. We're now two years into that plan. David Littleproud says there's no need to hide it. Why not release it and have transparency on that plan?

COLLINS: Well, we've obviously got a review underway at the moment. We're expecting details of that later this year. What I'd say is that significant new funding that we have provided to date has allowed the program to expand its reach. It's put on 350 new workers, there's a new depot, there's new vehicles, new aerial eradication contracts. You know, there's baiting going on. It's doubled the size of the treatment and surveillance area in terms of the existing outbreaks in Australia. We are taking this incredibly seriously. The response on the ground is obviously being led by Queensland, where it is primarily located. And as I've said, biosecurity is everybody's responsibility and part of the program is that public education and awareness and we are finding incursions - various incursions across the country and we're getting on top of those very quickly as we find them.

CANNANE: In recent years we've seen the spread of varroa mite, we've seen the spread of shot-hole borer and now fire ants. Is our biosecurity system fit for purpose?

COLLINS: Well, obviously when we came to office, biosecurity was underfunded. What we've been doing as the government is investing more. We've now invested almost $2 billion into biosecurity since we came into office. We continue to review biosecurity and to work with states and territories around biosecurity across the country. Obviously too though, as the climate changes and we get more people and parcels and movement of goods, we will see more incursions. And that's why it's important that we do understand this is everybody's responsibility. We obviously want sustainable biosecurity funding for a strong biosecurity system. Our biosecurity system is world-renowned for a good reason and that is because we are very good and we have been able to maintain, you know, pest free status for a whole range of diseases that other countries have failed at.

CANNANE: It's 19 past 8 on Radio National Breakfast we're talking to the Federal Agriculture Minister, Julie Collins. Earlier this year, the Federal Government scrapped plans for a biosecurity levy after intense pressure from the agriculture sector, do you have a plan B to boost our biosecurity funding?

COLLINS: As I said, since we've come to office, we have put additional significant resources into biosecurity. Importantly, we're also now getting full cost recovery from importers. We also are getting cost recovery from Australia Post for all of those parcels coming into the country. But as I said, as we see more parcels coming in, more goods coming in, more people coming in and more movement and as our climate is changing, we will continue to see incursions and that's why our arrangement and our national cost sharing arrangement in Australia is leading and in the way that we get that expert advice and make decisions based on expert advice and these decisions are being made all of the time in terms of containment of these incursions.

CANNANE: I just wanted to bring you to the issue of the algal bloom in South Australia. It's continuing to wreak havoc on the state's beaches and fisheries. We've spoken to fishers who just say, hey, how devastating it is for them just not to be able to put the boat on the water and get out there. Have you visited the site of the outbreak and what are your concerns about - what do you want to do about the issue?

COLLINS: Yeah, well, I think all Australians are concerned when they see the images and the size of this algal bloom in South Australia. I've been in South Australia a few times since the election, but I haven't seen this algal bloom in person. I have been talking to South Australian colleagues and South Australian colleagues have been talking about just the impact that it has been having. And obviously we've been in close contact with my counterpart in South Australia. I know that the Federal Environment Minister has dispatched his head of the Oceans Division down to have a look at the algal bloom, and we want to continue to work closely with our South Australian colleagues as they deal with this on the ground. You know, the deputy secretary of my department has been talking to the fisheries people in South Australia as their fisher folk do deal with this. It is very concerning for Australians, I think, to see the size of this outbreak and the impact that it's having on local communities.

CANNANE: Julie Collins, thanks for your time this morning.

COLLINS: Thanks very much.