Financial Review Debate — Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry

It is a pleasure to rise and speak on the report of the Primary Production Committee on the financial review of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. A number of things have happened in the agricultural sector over the last 2 years, but the establishment of the Primary Growth Partnership is probably right at the front of the list of important announcements and initiatives that have taken place under the very capable leadership of the Hon David Carter. The partnership involves an investment of $140 million a year, with industry-promoted innovation. It is wonderful to see, for the first time in many, many years, investment being put back into science, research, and development in the agricultural sector.

One of the things that Labour could never understand when it was in Government—and never does understand whenever it is in Government—was the fact that the economy of New Zealand is basically driven by primary production. I know that some members opposite hate that concept, some struggle with it, and some wish to change it, but after many, many years of their meddling, cutting, adjusting, criticising, and attacking they have failed to do so. In 2011 we are still in a situation where the low-hanging fruit, as far as growing the New Zealand economy is concerned, will come, and are coming, from our primary industries. Getting up and running an organisation with the horsepower of the Primary Growth Partnership and investing once again in technology, systems, environmental protections, and all of the things that will enhance our primary production sector as we go forward is a wonderful development and a wonderful initiative.

The establishment of the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases, with an investment of $45 million, is the most significant single thing that has happened in terms of our looking at what we can do to minimise the agricultural footprint of New Zealand. One of the ironies, I guess, of the debate in that area, which is generally driven by our opponents on the other side, is the idea that we need to tax the primary sector.

New Zealand’s primary production system has one of the lowest carbon footprints of any production system in the world. That has been proven by research undertaken by both of our major agricultural research universities—Lincoln University and Massey University. The Opposition wants to tax that sector or reduce production, thereby increasing production in the systems elsewhere in the world that would have to produce that food, which in turn would lead only to higher carbon emissions. The alliance is a wonderful development, and it was led by this Government. We were one of the very first Governments to get in behind it. It is a great thing to see.

Improving water management is one of the key drivers that will lift our productive systems in the agriculture sector. It provides such a huge opportunity for us, particularly on the eastern belt of New Zealand. A lot of attention has been paid to Canterbury recently, for a range of reasons, but when we look right along the eastern belt of New Zealand, we see highly productive land that is suitable for a range of different production systems, and not only for development in the dairy industry, as a lot of people would say. When water was made available in Marlborough it was not dairy cows that went on to the land; it was grapes. I will not stand here and try to forecast what might happen if those opportunities were made available in other areas, but potentially there is an enormous opportunity there for us. Investment and leadership in that area are essential as we go forward, and it is happening under the National-led Government.

The animal welfare issue never goes away, and it is always a very sensitive and emotive topic. We have made a significant investment of $8.2 million in that area. We have provided more officers than in the whole 9 years of the previous Government.

It is a pleasure to take a call in this debate, particularly in light of the very good report that was tabled by the Primary Production Committee, ably chaired, I might add, by my colleague Shane Ardern. I think it is a great pity that when we are talking about the most significant industry to the New Zealand economy, the Labour Opposition is not prepared to take a call. The thousands of listeners out there today need to note the interest shown by the Labour Opposition in the portfolio of agriculture and forestry. I guess it is not surprising; after all, when Labour was in Government it termed the industry a sunset industry.

There is so much this Government can be proud of in terms of what we have achieved within this portfolio, particularly when we review last year. My colleague Shane Ardern mentioned the Primary Growth Partnership. We now have the largest expenditure in primary sector innovation that New Zealand has ever seen. That programme was launched only 18 months ago. We now have $475 million worth of projects under way. That is a remarkable investment in 18 months. [Interruption] Annette King may criticise that, but no farmer in New Zealand, I assure her, would criticise this National Government’s expenditure in the primary production sector and in innovation.

There was a lot of talk about the emissions trading scheme last year, as we changed the scheme we had inherited from the Labour Government. We made it far more practical and far more affordable, and we faced with our farmers the issue about the introduction of agriculture in the scheme. We are reviewing that position at the moment, as we promised we would.

Let me make known the Labour Party’s position on the emissions trading scheme. We have heard the comments of Charles Chauvel, the previous Opposition spokesperson on climate change. He said that if the Labour Party is elected at the next election—not likely, I acknowledge—it will bring agriculture in immediately, and, rather than grandparenting any of the emissions to agriculture, it will land that immediately on the farmers of New Zealand. When farmers go to the polls I want them to realise that fact.

Animal welfare has been a big issue for a long period of time, and Mr Ardern is quite right in saying we have now allocated the largest increase in expenditure, at $8.2 million, that the sector has seen for years. We had a situation in Southland where the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Federated Farmers had an issue with the conducting of a particular animal welfare inquiry. I am pleased to say that the report has now been accepted by both the ministry and Federated Farmers.

We want to move forward in a constructive manner with Federated Farmers, because we need their assistance, just as we need the assistance of organisations such as Beef and Lamb New Zealand Ltd and DairyNZ as we collectively make sure we help farmers who get into unfortunate animal welfare situations—but if it is a perpetual habit of any farmer, frankly I do not want that person in our industry.

There is mention of water in the financial review. Water is the greatest competitive advantage this country has, and collectively we have to find ways to better store and allocate that water. With the allocation of that water, farmers will then have to utilise it far more efficiently than they do at the moment. With water will come intensification, so, again, we need to be prepared to invest money in science to allow the agricultural scientists of this country to find mechanisms by which we can intensify and increase productivity and profitability on farms while mitigating the environmental impacts of such intensification.

The final issue I want to talk about is probably the biggest risk this sector faces, and that is the risk associated with biosecurity. Day by day 175,000 items come into New Zealand, and every one of those is potentially a danger. All of us in the sector have a duty and a responsibility—and this applies to members of Her Majesty’s Opposition—to do what we can to have the most efficient biosecurity system in the world. If we have a breach of our biosecurity borders—and we have had one in the last 12 months in the kiwifruit sector—we have to acknowledge that we have to move quickly to try to contain it and do what we can to mitigate the effect of any biosecurity incursion.

Report noted.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade