Councils and agricultural groups across North West Queensland are calling on the Federal Government to reverse its decision to reject a proposed restocking allowance for producers recovering from the region’s devastating floods.
The joint call comes from the North West Queensland Regional Organisation of Councils (NWQROC), the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ), AgForce and the Queensland Farmers’ Federation, which argue the decision will significantly hamper recovery efforts across disaster-affected communities.
NWQROC Chair and Etheridge Shire Mayor, Barry Hughes, said the lack of Federal support would have consequences far beyond the agricultural sector.
“North West Queensland is in a critical moment of recovery after consecutive and prolonged disasters, and this decision is a serious blow to rebuilding our vital agricultural industry,” Hughes said.
“The impact will be felt well beyond the paddock, across our communities, local economies and the wider cattle industry.”
Mayor Hughes said the decision contrasted with previous Federal support provided to other flood-affected regions, including funding for exclusion fencing following flooding in Central and South West Queensland.
“We saw similar grants rolled out in the Central and South West following flooding last year,” he said.
“This isn’t just a bad decision, it’s clearly unfair.”
Deputy Chair of NWQROC and McKinlay Shire Mayor, Janene Fegan, said the scale of damage caused by the floods had exceeded the impacts experienced during the 2019 disaster events.
“This has put the region back by years economically, with more than double the roads and fencing damaged compared to 2019,” Fegan said.
She said prolonged isolation, damaged infrastructure and rising fuel costs had further complicated recovery efforts across the region.
“Producers and communities across the North West have shown the incredible return on investment of disaster recovery and resilience dollars,” Fegan said.
“To pull up now on this effort, leaving a gaping hole in our industry’s momentum, will be catastrophic.”
AgForce CEO, Niki Ford, said the agricultural sector was already under pressure from repeated disasters and rising operating costs.
“This is a devastating blow for an industry already reeling from the impact of repeated natural disasters, as well as rising fuel and fertiliser prices on primary production and transport,” Ford said.
She said the impacts of the decision would extend nationally due to the importance of Queensland’s agricultural sector to Australia’s broader economy and food supply chain.
Queensland Farmers’ Federation Chief Executive Officer, Jo Sheppard, said the decision appeared inconsistent with the Federal Government’s own National Food Security Strategy.
“This decision couldn’t have come at a worse time for Queensland farmers who are grappling with fuel and fertiliser supply shocks on the back of consecutive disaster seasons,” Sheppard said.
“The Federal Government’s own National Food Security Strategy rightly acknowledges resilience as a critical goal in developing the future of Australia’s food supply system.”
LGAQ President, Matt Burnett, said councils and communities had consistently identified the restocking allowance as a key recovery priority.
“Access to a restocking allowance has been a critical ask of industry, impacted councils and their local communities and the Queensland Government,” Burnett said.
“The Federal Government cannot walk away from these communities when they need them the most.”
Hughes also called for an agricultural summit bringing together all levels of government and industry representatives to develop a coordinated recovery pathway for the region.
“NWQROC is calling for an Agricultural Summit to bring the region together and plan for what comes next,” he said.
