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Icy reception for tax plan

News Clippings Peter Collins, Warrnambool Standard, August 26 2009

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Away from cosy Parliament House corridors Senator Steve Fielding braved yesterday’s icy south-west Victorian winds to hear farmers’ views on proposed pollution taxes.

He met dairy farmers in Colac and Naringal on a whistlestop tour of regional Victoria gathering community opinions before the controversial proposal was brought back to Parliament.

The Family First party leader also met parents concerned about changes to Youth Allowance affecting rural students wanting to study at university.

Sheltering from the rain in Brendan Rea’s Naringal dairy shed, the climate change sceptic heard concerns about proposed emissions trading legislation and a methane (burp) tax.

Mr Rea and neighbour, John Dalton, along with DemoDairy executive officer Mike Weise, said they feared farmers’ incomes would be further cut. They said that would then hurt the wider community.

``Farmers are already hit with drought and global economic downturn,’’ Mr Rea said. ``It’s break-even at best. To be hit with another tax would be further pain.

``Farmers could just walk away from their enterprises and the land could be used for other purposes.’‘

Mr Dalton said an emissions tax on dairy factories would mean they would have less to pay farmers.

Senator Fielding said he was disturbed by the Rudd Government’s rush to push its proposed carbon tax bill through Parliament again in November after it was recently defeated in the Senate.

``They want it all wrapped up before the Copenhagen convention in December, but why rush it,’’ he said.

“It is wise to wait.”