Primary Producers

Mr McBRIDE (MacKillop) (14:43): My question is to the Treasurer, representing the Minister for Primary Industries in the other house. Will the government consider providing council rate reductions and/or interest-free fodder loans to regional areas? With your leave, sir, and that of the house I will explain.

Leave granted.

Mr McBRIDE: Primary producers are currently experiencing their second failed spring with record low rainfalls and drought conditions. Farmers want to know what the government is doing to assist them.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee—Treasurer, Minister for Defence and Space Industries) (14:43): I thank the member for MacKillop for his question, and I also extend my thanks to him and to the member for Stuart, in particular, for their ongoing advocacy in this chamber but also for questions to me representing the minister in the other place, the Minister for Primary Industries, on this matter. As those two have made clear to me and also others in the chamber, it is very difficult for primary producers who have been impacted by a range of issues—not just the unseasonably dry conditions but, as we have heard as well, there have been other impacts like frost that have impacted primary producers across the state.

I can advise the house that the minister and her department are engaging with primary producers and their representatives on what measures may assist. As you can imagine, it is not necessarily a matter for the state government to provide council rate relief—the councils have that well within their bailiwick—but we are considering what other financial supports we can provide.

Last sitting week in response to a question from the member for Stuart regarding freight subsidies for donations of feed, I did undertake to take that away to the minister and her department to see what might be able to be supported. That work is continuing, in particular in consultation with those charitable organisations that have previously organised those sorts of arrangements in the past, as well as with primary industry representatives as well as what other programs the government might be able to assist primary producers in.

I'm sorry I don't have a definitive answer for the member for MacKillop, but I can advise him and the rest of the house that this is under active consideration so that we can provide a meaningful way as a state government to try to support primary producers who are experiencing these very challenging conditions.