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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2022-06-15 Daily Xml
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Biosecurity

The Hon. N.J. CENTOFANTI (Leader of the Opposition) (15:34): So often have I stood up in this place and spoken about biosecurity and its importance to the economic viability of this state, and I do so again today with even greater urgency. South Australia's biosecurity status is one of the state's greatest environmental, economic and social assets. A strong biosecurity regime underpins the quality of South Australian food and wine as well as the integrity of our agricultural and livestock industries.

Biosecurity must be front and centre for the government. It must be front and centre to prevent pests and diseases entering our state. It must be front and centre to mitigate and respond to an outbreak. It must be front and centre to recover from the devastating impacts that pests and diseases leave in their wake: the economic impact, the environmental impact, the impact on primary producers and the impact on local communities. Our leaders must pursue aggressive and well-funded policies to protect South Australia's strong biosecurity status and to ensure continued market access for our state's products. This includes maintaining high standards for any emergency response.

The Liberal government appreciated the importance and value of investing in biosecurity. Over the last four years, we invested heavily in biosecurity measures, measures such as rebuilding the South Australian dog fence, implementing the wild dog trapping program, adopting the Kangaroo Island feral pig eradication project and supporting weed control services. More than $70 million was committed to the fight against fruit fly to protect the state's $1.3 billion horticultural industry, to protect jobs, to protect businesses and to protect the fresh food supply chain.

The Liberal government put biosecurity front and centre. The contrast to the first Malinauskas Labor government budget could not be starker. Not only was funding for fruit fly eradication response reduced to just $13 million in 2022-23 compared with $33 million in our last year of the Liberal government but the biosecurity targets listed on the budget for 2022-23 failed to include foot-and-mouth disease. This is despite the devastating foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in Indonesia, the imminent threat to our livestock industry and an agricultural industry on high alert. It is absurd and it simply is not good enough.

When it comes to biosecurity, we must be proactive not reactive. We know the fight against fruit fly continues. We know Japanese encephalitis has been detected. We know other threats are either here already or have the potential to arrive. We do not need to find ourselves scrambling to react to an outbreak. If we prioritise, if we work with industry and if we commit resources effectively and efficiently, we can put ourselves in a position of strength. We must be vigilant and invest in our state's biosecurity.

Last week, the New South Wales government committed an additional $164 million to address growing biosecurity concerns that threaten its agricultural industry. The funding was provided in response to the outbreaks of lumpy skin and foot-and-mouth disease in Indonesia. The New South Wales Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional New South Wales, Paul Toole, said:

We want to make sure biosecurity does not become the next big issue.

The $164 million in funding will go towards developing vaccines, improving surveillance and testing resources and more effectively managing pests. I commend the New South Wales government for their commitment to ensuring their state's agricultural industry is better equipped in the future to respond to any outbreaks. As a government, they acknowledge the importance of investing in biosecurity. They acknowledge the importance of protecting the thousands of farmers and farming families that contribute to their state's economy.

The New South Wales government appreciates that biosecurity practices and procedures must evolve and adapt to provide primary industries and farmers with the best tools to manage biosecurity risks and to prepare against the threat of disease and pests. In South Australia, it is disappointing that we are seeing the opposite with the new Labor government. Instead of increasing biosecurity funding, the Malinauskas Labor government has reduced spending on biosecurity. Where is our government's investment in additional biosecurity measures? Where is our government's investment in the state's agricultural future?

These are important questions that the Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development needs to answer in this chamber on behalf of her government. The minister and her government must acknowledge that their failure to prioritise biosecurity is a mistake, and they must do so and make amends before it is too late.

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