David Carter

10 June, 2011

New Zealand Federated Farmers High Country Conference

Welcome to Christchurch.

For many of you, this is probably the first time you have been here since the two earthquakes. I’m sure you have seen for yourselves some of the damage to our city as you made your way here today.

Being Christchurch born and bred, this has been a distressing and challenging time. But the way all New Zealanders have joined together to help Canterbury through these tough times has been truly humbling.

To all of you, thanks for your support.

It’s great to hear that a small part of central Christchurch is scheduled to reopen for business at the end of October - just in time for Canterbury's Cup and Show Week. I hope, as in previous years, many of you will be attending Show Week this November.

This has been a tough three years with the global financial crisis, the earthquakes and finance company failures. But despite these challenges, this Government has continued to work hard on issues concerning farmers.

I’d like to talk to you today about three specific issues – the Government’s plan for high country management, the Government’s focus on biosecurity and the Emissions Trading Scheme.

And I’m happy to take questions after that.

High country management

The management of the high country is a priority of ours. It is a big challenge and one that is specific to you.

Over the past two-and-a-half years, we have been working on a new system for setting rents for high country pastoral leases. During the development of this policy, officials worked closely with the High Country Accord who have been very supportive of the new system.

Not only does the new system charge rents based on the earning capacity of a property, it also takes into account a number of factors, including the productive capacity of the lease and pastoral economic conditions. All of which will provide greater certainty to farmers.

It’s simple to administer, more transparent and provides a fair rent. It also allows farmers to get on with the job of farming and looking after the high country, rather than fighting bureaucracy.

The Crown Pastoral Land Amendment Bill is currently before the Primary Production Select Committee. I know that Federated Farmers High Country has made a submission that recommended some improvements to the Bill.

I understand the Select Committee will be carefully considering these recommendations, and others made from the High Country Accord.

Because of parliamentary time constraints, we are under pressure to get this passed before the election. But regardless, National is committed to a fairer and more equitable pastoral lease rental system for high country farmers, so if the Bill is not passed before the election, I assure you it will be done as soon as possible post-election.

When our new rent setting system was announced in August last year, Labour’s Damien O’Connor said the policy offered a "principled position" that would be "welcomed by farmers".

I took that as support, and recognition of the stupidity of Labour’s previous policy of a rent formula that ignored earning capacity, and charged rent for views and amenity values.

However, it was a different story when the Crown Pastoral Land Amendment Bill had its first reading in Parliament in February.

O’Connor had clearly been rolled and Labour withdrew its support with David Parker giving what can only be described as a spiteful and hate-filled speech calling the policy – quote:

• "rent reductions being given to millionaires"

• "A sop from National to its farming mates" and,

• "a small number of rich people are getting millions of dollars at the expense of taxpayers".

This goes to show that the politics of envy are alive and well in the Labour ranks.

Focus on biosecurity

The second issue I want to discuss today is biosecurity.

New Zealand is recognised internationally as having a very good biosecurity system, but risks exist every day. We need to constantly review the system to ensure we are doing the best possible job.

Biosecurity works on three fronts: working overseas to stop travellers and goods from bringing pests here; working at the border to identify and eliminate pests that do arrive; and finally, working here to find, manage or eliminate pests that have established.

Currently the Biosecurity Law Reform Bill is before Parliament. This Bill proposes a number of changes, one of which is Government Industry Agreements.

GIA’s will ensure we are better prepared by working with industry prior to an incursion, rather than dealing with it after the event. It’s the ambulance at the top of the cliff, not the bottom.

We believe strengthened partnerships between industry and government will lead to better results in dealing with incursions of pests and diseases.

This is why the Government, in discussion with industry, has agreed to meet a minimum cost share of 50 percent for priority readiness and response programmes, even though in some cases, the private benefit to industry far exceeds the public benefit to the New Zealand economy.

Pest management

The Bill also proposes changes to the way established pests are managed in New Zealand.

Despite their best of intentions, our forebears brought thousands of new species to this country. Many like cows, sheep and grapes have become cornerstones of our export trade.

But others, including rabbits, stoats, rats, old man’s beard, gorse, broom – have been unmitigated disasters.

We can’t eradicate most of these pests and weeds, and instead have to find ways of living with them - ways that we can afford - while we mitigate the worst of their effects.

In March, I launched the Pest Management National Plan of Action. This Plan defines how we will all work together to achieve our goal of delivering the best overall outcome for New Zealand.

There are two key changes in this Plan but I’d particularly like to talk about Crown lands requirement to meet ‘good neighbour’ obligations under regional pest management strategies.

This means all landowners in New Zealand, including the Crown, will be bound to control pests such as rabbits and wildings trees, so that they don’t spill over and affect their neighbours.

The cost of established pests to our economy runs close to $2 billion a year – over a billion of lost production, and around $720 million in directly preventing pests from arriving in New Zealand and managing them once they’re here.

The proposed Plan of Action looks at ways to ensure our pest management strategies limit this cost, and meet the needs of today and the challenges of tomorrow.

On rabbits specifically, I am pleased to say that work is progressing on the Rabbit Plan of Action.

This looks at ways to minimise the negative economic, environmental and social impacts of rabbits. It also aims to ensure the rabbit management system is well coordinated and effective.

I understand you will be hearing more about this work shortly.

As for wilding pines, MAF has commissioned a report on behalf of the Wilding Conifer Management Group to look into how to improve wilding pine management in the high country.

This report will help us untangle this complex issue and make sure that we can come up with long-term solutions to this long-term problem.

The Government has also changed the status of Canada geese, so that this pest can be more easily managed by farmers, rather than only by Fish and Game, which has failed to manage the numbers responsibly in most regions.

ETS

Lastly I’d like to talk about the Emissions Trading Scheme.

Labour’s proposal to bring agriculture into the Emissions Trading Scheme in 2013 would be economic suicide.

To gouge $800 million from our farmers, just when the planets are finally aligned with all the primary sectors showing good prospects, would tax around 33-thousand dollars on average from every genuine sheep/beef and dairy farmer in New Zealand.

This is another example of Labour’s politics of envy.

National is currently reviewing the legislated 2015 date, with another review due in 2014. But, remember, the Prime Minister has stated categorically "we’ll only bring agriculture in if it’s consistent with what we see from other producers around the world – and at this point, we not seeing a lot of movement in other countries."

National already has a clear plan to boost science and innovation and create the smart economy that Phil Goff talks about.

An initiative I’m particularly proud of is the Primary Growth Partnership. This government-industry partnership launched just 20 months has so far pledged a staggering $477 million towards cutting-edge primary sector innovation. This is the largest-ever funding injection in this space.

We can also take credit for our international initiative, the Global Research Alliance. This now has 34 member countries and we are currently in the process of organising the inaugural Ministerial meeting of the Alliance, a meeting which New Zealand will chair.

Internationally we have received considerable mana for the leadership we’ve shown with this initiative.

It also reiterates this Government’s commitment to developing scientific solutions to enable farmers to reduce their emissions, without reducing production.

You know as well as I do that it has been a tough three years. We have witnessed a global financial crisis, the collapse of many finance companies, the $1.7 billion bailout of South Canterbury Finance, Pike River, and close to my heart – the two Christchurch earthquakes.

You have faced floods, storms, droughts, increasing costs, decreasing land prices, bumper seasons and stock losses.

Despite all of this, I believe the National-led Government has faced the challenges head on and we have handled things pretty well.

On 26 November, you will get the opportunity to judge that for yourself.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you this afternoon.

ENDS

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