‘An insult’: Nationals senator Matt Canavan slams government’s $107m sheep export industry shutdown package

Nationals senator Matthew Canavan says Australia’s nearly defunct live sheep export industry should receive a billion dollars, slamming the Government’s $107 million transition package as “an insult”. Last week the Government put legislation to Parliament to set May 2028 as the end date for the nation’s live sheep export industry. It is also committing $107m to a four-year transition package. The industry shutdown is expected to impact about 4000 Western Australian farms. Senator Canavan told The West that the $107 million payout was “nowhere near enough”. “The industry is apparently worth around $80m a year . . . so the package should be more like a billion dollars,” he said. “The Government is shutting down people’s livelihoods; people have invested in capital, equipment and skills . . . and the Government is just coming in and saying ‘we’re closing you down’ and they’re doing so with a package that’s worth $16,000 per farm. “Imagine if the Government came along and . . . shut your industry down and gave you $16,000 for it. It’s an insult.” Last Friday a 1700-strong truck convoy involving around 3000 farmers descended on Perth’s CBD in a peak-hour “Keep the Sheep” campaign. WAFarmers’ President John Hassell said: “This is a deeply unpopular policy . . . and the Government needs to get the message that we’re not going to be played with. “We work bloody hard; we want to make an honest living, we don’t want to be mucked around with.” Senator Canavan said he had spoken to the Export Council of Australia — the nation’s peak international trade body — who told him the shutdown was taking “a huge toll”. “It’s really harrowing for hardworking for hardworking men and women who often don’t want to be involved in politics, but they’re getting pulled into this because of decisions of their own government,” Senator Canavan said. “I don’t want to see the industry shut down, I don’t think we need to spend taxpayers dollars putting out otherwise commercial businesses.” Agriculture minister Murray Watt said the transition package would help WA producers move towards onshore sheep processing. “In providing advice to Government, an independent panel conducted extensive consultation with industry, animal welfare experts and other key stakeholders about the assistance required to transition from live sheep exports towards more value-adding onshore,” he said. “Our $107m transition package is a substantial contribution from taxpayers to assist an industry that has been declining for 20 years, without any previous taxpayer assistance. “We want to assist the sheep industry generate more processing jobs onshore, rather than keep sending those jobs offshore.” Data from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences has revealed global demand for Aussie sheep meat is remaining high. Sheep meat production and lamb slaughter volumes are forecast to grow by 2 and 3 per cent respectively over the 2024-25 financial year. “Here in Australia, we produce some of the best lamb and mutton in the world, we’ve always known that,” Senator Watt said. “The more sheep meat we export, means we can create more jobs onshore in the meat processing sector and see more economic benefits flow through our regional communities.”

‘An insult’: Nationals senator Matt Canavan slams government’s $107m sheep export industry shutdown package

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