Interview with Warwick Long, ABC Country Hour - Victoria

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC COUNTRY HOUR - VICTORIA
WEDNESDAY, 30 OCTOBER 2024

SUBJECTS: H5N1 avian influenza preparedness, agricultural workforce

WARWICK LONG [HOST]: Quick straw poll in your mind: do you know who the Assistant Minister for Agriculture is in Australia right now? Not the current Agriculture Minister. That's Julie Collins, who's just taken over from Murray Watt. There's an Assistant Minister for Ag. Who is it? I bet most of you couldn't guess it. It's actually Queensland Senator, Anthony Chisholm, who is the current Assistant Minister for Agriculture and he's been on a tour through multiple states looking at farming and workforce issues, as well as preparedness in Australia for the threat of the deadly strain of bird flu found elsewhere in the world. The Assistant Minister role is really important in terms of how government works. It can be where the rubber hits the road in terms of delivering Federal Government policy to make sure it's getting out onto the ground. So, with him in Shepparton this morning, I spoke to Senator Chisholm about his role and focus on farming for this country and some of his announcements around that.

ANTHONY CHISHOLM [ASSISTANT MINISTER]: Yeah, good to be here. And I've been here the last day and heading to a couple of farms on the way back to Melbourne today. But a good experience and the first time I've been able to get out here. All these regions are different, so it's great to get across them and see what's happening and get a sense of what makes these communities tick.

LONG: Before we get into bird flu, which we want to talk to you about today, particularly the government's response to it - being Assistant Minister, sorry, in Agriculture, traditionally, you know, it was - it was a role that was thrown things like fisheries and forestry and different elements. What do you see as your role in this Albanese Government ministry?

CHISHOLM: Yeah. So, my responsibilities are around workforce, which is obviously significant for all parts of the industry and all regional communities as well. I've also got responsibility for traceability, and that's something that is significant and interesting and challenging all at the same time. And also the RDCs, which I've had the opportunity to meet with now online, and they all do amazing work. So, how can we get them better collaborating and delivering results that are going to make a difference for farms and communities across the country.

LONG: So, one of the hard bits of Federal Government in particular is where the rubber hits the road, and that's your role, right?

CHISHOLM: Well, yes, you're holding me to account there. But yeah, I find I've really enjoyed the engagement I've had over the last few months. People are willing to make time for you, whether it be a farm, whether it be an industry leader, and that's something that I appreciate. I've been able to build my knowledge, which as a Queensland Senator, agriculture is obviously significant, but it's been good to build my knowledge across the country. So, here today, I've been through regional Tasmania and I'll try and get around the other states as we get going. I’ve been through Northern Tablelands as well in Northern NSW. So, people have been really generous with their time. I appreciate it. And we've got Senate Estimates on next week, which will be a good challenge as well.

LONG: Oh, yeah, always many, many hours worth of watching coming up, which is always interesting with the Senate Estimates. Let's talk bird flu. The government announced, well, nearly $100 million in their package around the threat of the bird flu. We've just been through our worst ever bird flu outbreak in Australia, which was for the H7 variety. The H5N1 is the big threat that lies on the horizon. How important is it to get so many elements, including agriculture, but also the environment and just regular Australians up to speed on what's at risk here?

CHISHOLM: I think it's really important and obviously we've seen the devastating impact that the variants already had in Australia. But when you look at what's happening around the world, you can get a sense of how significant that challenge is. We want to make sure that we're as prepared as possible, and part of that is communicating to, obviously the industry, but also the general public about what this means and everyone needs to remain vigilant, and that's what part of that money will go towards in terms of ensuring that we can better communicate the threat and the risk and what people can do to prepare.

LONG: So, from who you've spoken to so far, how do you gauge our preparedness?

CHISHOLM: Well, we obviously are seeing what's happening around the world and that, I think, has seen and obviously gone through what we already have. So, we want to make sure we're as thorough and professional and determined as possible. Biosecurity is obviously significant for Australia and we do have, I suppose, a track record in dealing with these matters as best as we can. But we want to prepare as thoroughly as possible, knowing what could potentially be coming down the line for us.

LONG: Is $95 million enough?

CHISHOLM: I think that this is a significant investment that the government announced recently. Obviously, this is a major concern. So, we want to ensure that we're doing what we can to prepare as best as possible. If additional resources need to be provided, I'm sure the government will be willing to step up if that's the case.

LONG: What's in the diary in the coming weeks? What are some of the things and the passions that you want to follow from here?

CHISHOLM: Yeah. We had a meeting of the Workforce Roundtable the previous week and that was the first opportunity I've had to meet with them and I really enjoyed that. So, that was a thorough meeting, a good discussion about the issues, and a real determination to continue that group into the future, given that it was something that Minister Watt set up. So, it was encouraging. We've also got a meeting of the RDCs. I've had an online meeting with them. We've got another meeting with them later in the year and I'm looking forward to that. And I find the work that they're doing really fascinating and I want to ensure that we can try and get that better out to the public so they get an understanding of what the RDCs are up with. And we've also got a meeting coming up with all the State Agriculture Ministers as well. So, I'll have a new colleague to deal with in Queensland. But we want to work constructively with them, build the productivity of our sector. And there's obviously many challenges that we need to ensure that we're on the same page as.

LONG: Just on workforce, is that making sure the levers that government can control, like the PALM Scheme and the backpacker visa and other workforce participation measures, are working for agriculture?

CHISHOLM: That's right and it's a tripartite body, so we've got representatives from unions and from the industry and independent observers as well. And what was really surprising to me was how much commonality there was between everyone. We all want to see people treated fairly, have good experiences if they're coming to the country, but they also want to ensure that there's a steady supply of labour for their seasonal work at the same time. But also we had a discussion about, in many regional rural economies, you're not going to get a coffee or a lunch served as well unless you've got that labour that's in that part of the world. So, I think that it's important to ensure that there's that continuous supply, that they're treated well. And I think that the industry representative bodies, unions, are all determined to deliver on that.

LONG: Do you think the PALM Scheme is working well?

CHISHOLM: I think that it is largely working well, but there's also areas of exploitation. That isn't good enough and we want to ensure that those people who do come here are treated with respect and treated well, and that they have a good experience.

LONG: And obviously, after the UK Free Trade Agreement negotiations, there are concerns in the industry about possibly losing the backpacker visa which requires backpackers to work for a certain amount, 88 days, in Australia to get a second year visa. What are your thoughts on that? Are you listening to concerns from industry there?

CHISHOLM: I am. It's an important issue and one that I'd certainly picked up with my Regional Development hat on. And then obviously it's been accentuated since I've taken on this role over the past few months. We want to ensure that we're advocating strongly for the sector and for regional communities and that's what that body will be able to do.

LONG: Has it got a future, the backpacker visa?

CHISHOLM: I think that it does, and I think that it plays a significant role in so many regional economies, but also in our Ag sector as well.

LONG: And a strong endorsement of the backpacker visa there from the Assistant Minister for Agriculture, who is Anthony Chisholm, a Queensland Senator, speaking to you there on the program.