OPPONENTS to the Victorian Government’s proposed Port of Melbourne tax said it would be passed on to rural and region truckies, farmers, and Victorian families who will pay more for goods and force regional truck companies off the road.

Broadwater truck company, Fry Cartage, owner, Jodi Fry was asked if the proposed tax would impact on their business.

“Absolutely it will,” she said.

“We will all cop it - at every turn.

“As a local transport business operator, it is extremely hard to cop these tax increases.

“We transport predominantly livestock, and farming that has taken such a hit over the last 12 months.

“If it’s not interest rate increases, then it’s tax increases.

“Do you ever see this government being held to account for budget blow outs? No.

“If we ran our businesses like the government - there would be no businesses left to tax.

“It’s a shame they can’t reign in their own overspending.

“Our budgets aren’t flexible and theirs shouldn’t be either.

“The tax will be passed onto the consumer - at every part of the chain - from producer, to wholesaler, to retailer - all will cop an increase.”

Mrs Fry said this proposal was on top of the Federal Government’s proposed 10 per cent annual increase to the heavy vehicle road user charge that would see the tax truckies pay on fuel jump from the current 27.2 cents per litre up to 36.2 cents per litre by July 1, 2025.

“At the end of the day - we will all pay for it, (adding to) cost of living pressures.”

Both the Opposition and the Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) said the tax on truck movements at the Port of Melbourne was a blatant cash-grab.

VFF president, Emma Germano urged the government to redirect its focus to cut emissions.

She said the misguided approach by the government risked costing farmers millions and Victoria’s mantle as Australia’s largest food and fibre exporter by value.

 “If this government was serious about lowering truck emissions, they would have invested wisely in efficient rail access to the Port of Melbourne years ago,” Ms Germano said.

 “This truck tax is a blanket cash-grab from the government aimed at clawing back their record debt.”

 “It means farmers will be forced to pay through the nose to prop-up eye watering spending on infrastructure projects in Melbourne, many of which are massively over-budget.”

Ms Germano also questioned the constitutional power of the Victorian Government to levy the new tax.

 “Under the constitution, only the Commonwealth can levy customs and excise charges,” she said.

“There is a strong argument that the proposed tax could be classified as either of these forms of tax.”

Shadow ports and freight minister, Roma Britnell, said documents from the Department of Transport and Planning revealed a road freight tax was being actively considered for trucks loading and unloading at the Port of Melbourne.

Ms Britnell said this would make the cost of road freight more expensive, and thus making rail freight more competitive, despite one container terminal not even having rail access.

She said only part of the proposed tax was to be spent on upgrading the rail freight network, with most simply being returned to consolidated revenue to cover some of the more than $30 billion in cost blowouts on the government’s major projects.

“This ludicrous approach by Labor will raise the cost of freight on roads, costing Victorians more for goods,” she said.

“Instead of making rail more competitive by investing in it, this will simply make road freight more expensive and is no solution to Labor’s long neglect of Victoria’s rail freight network.

“Labor should fix the rail freight network in order to bring costs down rather than impose a sneaky tax that will do little to improve freight route efficiency and will be passed on to Victorian families who will pay more for goods.”

Transport and infrastructure minister, Danny Pearson was contacted for comment and a Victorian Government spokesperson replied and said that no decisions regarding the tax had yet been made by the Victorian Government.

“We’ve invested over a quarter of a billion dollars to support rail freight, so operators can run heavier and faster trains more often, while reducing emissions and congestion around the port.”

Rail transport produces three times less pollution per tonne per kilometre compared to road freight, supporting the state’s net zero emissions target by 2045 and environmental sustainability.

The spokesperson said Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) was working extensively with industry to develop a comprehensive plan to support the commencement and ongoing viability of the Port Rail Shuttle Network.

“The Department of Transport and Planning is examining further options to boost our rail freight network and get more heavy trucks off our roads, and we will continue to work closely with industry to determine which policy settings are most appropriate.”