MAY saw the release of a tight state budget for the coming financial year by the Victorian Government, which didn’t bring any joy for the agriculture sector.
This was never going to be a generous budget, with Victoria battling spiralling debt levels following high spending over the COVID lockdowns.
However, in the budget announcement agriculture was only mentioned a handful of times; perhaps indicative of the priority farmers were given in the spending announcements.
Some of the budget allocations relevant for Ag include;
• Ag Vic will need to make some cuts, with a total of $496.6 million allocated to Agriculture Victoria for 2024-25, down almost 30 per cent on the $687.3m allocated last financial year.
• The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action was allocated $2 million for the management of pests across 2024-25, with a further $800,000 to be invested in the two years thereafter. This will allow the fox bounty to continue until at least June 2025.
• $133m invested to support Victoria's regional rail network, aimed at increasing the use of rail for freight purposes.
• $62m invested in upgrades to make regional roads safer and improve freight routes.
• $85m towards Victorian biosecurity, of which $73m is allocated to eradicating the red imported fire ant.
The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) says the state budget delivered in May was a missed opportunity to invest in Victorian agriculture, drive productivity and propel Victoria’s economy.
VFF president Emma Germano said despite this announcement, agriculture remains ready to drive a prosperous economy.
“Regional Victorian’s have been watching the overspend on city-centric projects for years. We’re glad that this has been reigned in, but we would have liked more money to be injected into regional Victoria, particularly in our crumbling road network, it’s been too long coming.”
“Whilst Premier Allan’s budget looks to be a reset for the state, it is a reflection of Victoria’s dire financial situation. We’re glad there are no drastic cutbacks for the industry and no new taxes, but there’s also a lack investment in our sector in the immediate future.”
“Forecasts show state debt will soar to $188 billion over the next few years, so it’s clear we’ll be dealing with huge overhanging debt for some time. Victorian farmers contribute more than $19 billion dollars to the economy through our food and fibre production and we can do more.
“We just need the government to get behind us.
“In the coming years, stagnating productivity and the lack of investment within our state threaten to become a major set back to our prosperity.
“Despite so many challenges over the past few years, agriculture has proven its resilience as a sector, and continues to underpin the Victorian economy, not to mention the vital role we play in feeding our state and beyond.”
Ms Germano added that while this budget remains a lacklustre affair, the VFF will seek further information regarding a number of funding announcements made, especially regarding animal welfare and the energy transition.
“We’ll be asking the government for more details regarding the Energy Upgrade Improvement Program slated in the budget.
“Given the government’s fast-tracking of renewable energy infrastructure, we need to make sure they don’t continue to stream-roll farmers in the path of these projects,” Ms Germano said.
