May 9, 2014
AgForce Queensland has joined the voices protesting against a touted increase in fuel excise in the upcoming Federal Budget.
The group today strongly urged the Federal Government not to impose “yet another unsustainable input cost on primary production” through increased fuel excises.
There have been reports that the Federal Government plans to reintroduce six-monthly indexing of the fuel excise, which currently stands at 38.1c per litre.
It is believed the proposed change could result in fuel prices rising by 2.5 to 3 cents a litre in the first year.
AgForce General President Ian Burnett said in a State as vast as Queensland, transport and freight costs already made up a sizeable component of production costs and imposts on rural communities and families.
“Furthermore, recent years have seen the costs of a range of other agricultural inputs rise dramatically to place enormous pressure on broadacre agriculture while clearly damaging its efforts to remain profitable and competitive,” Mr Burnett said.
“To increase the price of fuel would only put pressure on our ability to compete with other global suppliers of food and fibre.
“Our members, as primary producers, are price takers with no way of passing these expenses on.”
Mr Burnett said that while the rural sector understood the difficult budgetary challenges before the government, and the need to reduce debt, an increase in primary production input expenses would ultimately only constrain economic activity.
“We know that as investment in the mining and resources sector wanes, agribusiness will become one of the drivers and leaders of the economy, particularly as the Asian middle class and demand for high quality protein grows,” he said.
“To place further cost burdens on agriculture at this time of great opportunity surely diminishes our capability to seize such opportunity and best contribute to the national economy.”
- Related article: RACQ Slams Fuel Excise
