February 6, 2023
AgForce will campaign against a proposal by a think tank that the fuel tax credit for farmers should be halved, and the reduced rate of road tax paid by tractors should be abolished.
CEO Michael Guerin warned the proposals, suggested by the Grattan Institute, would be disastrous to the economy.
“AgForce stands united with the National Farmers’ Federation in calling on Treasurer Jim Chalmers to urgently rule out any changes to the fuel tax credits scheme ahead of the Federal Budget,” he said.
“Farmers are already battling a cost-of-farming crisis with fuel, fertiliser and other inputs at historically high levels.
“As a result, food bills are soaring and families are feeling the pinch at the checkout.
“Making things tougher for farmers will only result in even higher inflation and yet more pain for consumers.”
AgForce says the Grattan Institute report suggests that by increasing the cost of diesel for farmers, greenhouse gas emissions will be lowered as farmers will encouraged to use less or find alternatives.
Mr Guerin said this was further evidence farmers were being “unfairly targeted by greenies seeking to vilify them over climate change”.
“It’s sad to see our farmers being attacked again over climate change, when agriculture has already done more than any other industry in this country to lower emissions – reducing our emissions by 58.21 per cent since 2005,” he said.
“As responsible custodians of the land and our nation’s true environmentalists, our farmers will never shy away from playing their part when it comes to helping reduce our country’s carbon emissions.
“But taxing tractors is not a fair solution.
“The diesel road tax is intended for heavy road vehicles, such as large trucks.
“These vehicles cause the most wear and tear on our roads so it’s fair they should pay more for road repairs.”
