Legislative Council Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1) 55 1 Parliament of South Australia Legislative Council published Question Time Drought Assistance Drought Assistance The Hon. J.E. HANSON Legislative Council Drought Assistance The Hon. J.E. HANSON (14:41): My question is to the Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development. Will the minister speak to the chamber about the recent charity hay runs that have been happening across the state with funding support from the Malinauskas government? The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN Legislative Council Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development Minister for Forest Industries Drought Assistance The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development, Minister for Forest Industries) (14:42): I thank the honourable member for his question. As members in this chamber know, last November, the Premier and I announced the government's drought support package to provide assistance to primary producers affected by drought. The state government's drought support package includes: $5 million for the On-farm Drought Infrastructure Rebate Scheme, which provides rebates of up to 75 per cent (to a maximum of $5,000 excluding GST), to assist with eligible projects that manage drought conditions and strengthen drought preparedness, with strong interest recorded in the scheme so far; the Connecting Communities Events program which has also received strong interest where groups can apply for up to $5,000 to host events that foster social connections and provide support during these challenging times; $2 million to assist charities with freight costs to transport donated fodder to assist farmers with feeding livestock; plus an additional $1 million for additional health and wellbeing support through Family and Business Mentors and Rural Financial Counsellors. I am very pleased to see this funding going to good use, for example with the massive Aussie Hay Runners charity hay run over the Australia Day long weekend. Over 100 truckloads of donated hay from Victoria were delivered to farming communities across the state through financial support from the Malinauskas government. Donated hay provides much needed support for primary producers during some of the driest conditions on record. With hay becoming more difficult to source in SA and prices increasing, donated fodder can provide much needed relief to primary producers who are struggling to feed livestock. The trucks travelled a total of 218,770 kilometres carrying over $400,000 worth of donated hay, being 3,630 bales, which assisted over 130 farmers. The fleet of trucks left early in the morning on 25 January via the Calder Highway through Sea Lake, Mildura, Renmark, Morgan and Burra. The convoy arrived on Saturday afternoon at the Peterborough Rodeo Grounds, where they were met by the Rotary Club of Peterborough, and truck drivers were able to sit down and have a meal. I am told that this event provided much-needed community connection, with people coming together and supporting each other. The trucks then headed in multiple directions to cover 11 local government areas, including the Adelaide Plains, Ceduna, Elliston, Goyder, the Mid Murray, Mount Remarkable, Murray Bridge, Northern Areas, Orroroo Carrieton, Peterborough and Wakefield. Other organisations, including Need for Feed and Rural Aid, have been and are continuing to deliver thousands of bales of donated hay to hundreds of farmers with the assistance of government funding. The assistance is spread all across the state, from the South-East to the Mid North, Murraylands and all the way to Eyre Peninsula. I am so pleased that the government has been able to support these hay runs, which are providing much-needed assistance to farmers affected by drought. I would particularly like to thank the various volunteers involved in this very, very important initiative.