I am pleased to rise to make a statement on the I am pleased to rise to make a statement on the Young Farmers Finance Council — Annual Report 2015. The Young Farmers Finance Council was created to encourage the establishment of young people in farming. It assists young people who have demonstrated an interest in farming, and it advises and assists the minister on the development of schemes for the purchase of farming land or improvements by the council to enable young people to become established in farming.
The council’s reports are not particularly lengthy, so I have had the opportunity to read not just the current annual report but also previous reports. The report of 2013 talked about a decade of drought in irrigation areas. We are now two years down the track, and things have not gotten any better. Dams are still low, and rain is scarce. All indications are that we are facing a record El Nino, and that generally means less rain for Australia. The Andrews government is not standing idly by whilst this is happening. The deterioration in weather conditions is having a significant impact on our farming families.
Farming provides $11 billion to the Victorian economy. The Andrews government has provided $1.1 million for new standpipes and firefighting tanks in the western parts of Victoria. Fourteen standpipes will be installed to ease the burden on families being forced to travel long distances to cart their water for stock and domestic use. They will be put into communities including Ararat, Stawell, Great Western. Edenhope, Apsley and Kaniva. There will also be nine firefighting tanks installed near existing standpipes along the Wimmera–Mallee pipeline. This is an important measure to keep rural communities and farmers safe in what is shaping as a long and hard fire season.
Despite the difficulties associated with life on the land, when facing the uncertainties of drought and climate change, the Young Farmers Finance Council is relevant and important Young people still want a life on the land, and we need them to want that as food security is a fundamental requirement of living in a developed nation.
The Young Farmers Finance Council has three main streams of loans. These are for purchase of stock and equipment, land purchase and the One 2 Grow scheme which is aimed at helping aspiring farmers purchase their first block of land.
The Andrews Labor Government believes that it is vital to support our farmers through these difficult times. That is why we refunded the National Farmers Health Centre for another $4 million. I note that the National Farmers Health Centre is located in Hamilton, smack bang in the south-west where our farmers are doing it tough.
We have also established a new support package that delivers mental health first aid in 10 drought-affected areas, and we have put on additional Rural Finance Counsellors.
We have added to the State Schools Relief program and put nearly a million dollars into kindergarten support in drought affected communities. We have established a million-dollar program for drought affected farmers and farm workers to enable them to work on environmental projects. There has been a $1.5 million drought extension program to help farmers with necessary decisions like destocking, feed budgeting and land management, to name a few.
These are the hardest times for drought affected families. The stresses are palpable.
That is why we have put $5.8 million into the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund to ensure that kids from drought-affected areas do not miss out on these educational experiences. They will be the farmers of the future. Like the young farmers who took advantage of the Young Farmers Finance Council loans in this report, they too will have a role to play in our regional economy.
Drought will always be part of nature’s cycle. Here in government, though, we will do all we can to support our farmers, young and old, through these difficult and tough times. I commend this report to the house.
. The Young Farmers Finance Council was created to encourage the establishment of young people in farming. It assists young people who have demonstrated an interest in farming, and it advises and assists the minister on the development of schemes for the purchase of farming land or improvements by the council to enable young people to become established in farming.
The council’s reports are not particularly lengthy, so I have had the opportunity to read not just the current annual report but also previous reports. The report of 2013 talked about a decade of drought in irrigation areas. We are now two years down the track, and things have not gotten any better. Dams are still low, and rain is scarce. All indications are that we are facing a record El Nino, and that generally means less rain for Australia. The Andrews government is not standing idly by whilst this is happening. The deterioration in weather conditions is having a significant impact on our farming families.
Farming provides $11 billion to the Victorian economy. The Andrews government has provided $1.1 million for new standpipes and firefighting tanks in the western parts of Victoria. Fourteen standpipes will be installed to ease the burden on families being forced to travel long distances to cart their water for stock and domestic use. They will be put into communities including Ararat, Stawell, Great Western. Edenhope, Apsley and Kaniva. There will also be nine firefighting tanks installed near existing standpipes along the Wimmera–Mallee pipeline. This is an important measure to keep rural communities and farmers safe in what is shaping as a long and hard fire season.
Despite the difficulties associated with life on the land, when facing the uncertainties of drought and climate change, the Young Farmers Finance Council is relevant and important Young people still want a life on the land, and we need them to want that as food security is a fundamental requirement of living in a developed nation.
The Young Farmers Finance Council has three main streams of loans. These are for purchase of stock and equipment, land purchase and the One 2 Grow scheme which is aimed at helping aspiring farmers purchase their first block of land.
The Andrews Labor Government believes that it is vital to support our farmers through these difficult times. That is why we refunded the National Farmers Health Centre for another $4 million. I note that the National Farmers Health Centre is located in Hamilton, smack bang in the south-west where our farmers are doing it tough.
We have also established a new support package that delivers mental health first aid in 10 drought-affected areas, and we have put on additional Rural Finance Counsellors.
We have added to the State Schools Relief program and put nearly a million dollars into kindergarten support in drought affected communities. We have established a million-dollar program for drought affected farmers and farm workers to enable them to work on environmental projects. There has been a $1.5 million drought extension program to help farmers with necessary decisions like destocking, feed budgeting and land management, to name a few.
These are the hardest times for drought affected families. The stresses are palpable.
That is why we have put $5.8 million into the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund to ensure that kids from drought-affected areas do not miss out on these educational experiences. They will be the farmers of the future. Like the young farmers who took advantage of the Young Farmers Finance Council loans in this report, they too will have a role to play in our regional economy.
Drought will always be part of nature’s cycle. Here in government, though, we will do all we can to support our farmers, young and old, through these difficult and tough times. I commend this report to the house.