❓ Hon Robyn McSweeney questions the Minister for Agriculture regarding farmer concerns about proposed land clearing regulations. Hon Kim Chance dismisses land clearing as a minor issue for agriculture, despite its environmental impact, and criticises the PGA and WAFF for focusing on it.
AnsweredQoN 431Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
Is the minister aware that the Pastoralists and Graziers Association and the Western Australian Farmers Federation have vowed to fight the Government’s proposed land clearing regulations, and does the minister agree that the clearing of one hectare per decade for normal farm management practices is satisfactory? If not, will the minister take up the farmers’ cause within Cabinet? The PRESIDENT: Order! I remind the Leader of the House that this is not an opportunity to provide a ministerial statement, although the leader may want to indicate that he will give a ministerial statement at the appropriate time, which is not now. Hon KIM CHANCE
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the President for his advice. However, there is very broad scope to answer this question as the question was broad in nature. If the Western Australian Farmers Federation and the Pastoralists and Graziers Association have little better to do with their time than make an issue of this matter, I am very surprised. Land clearing is probably the most overblown question, by both sides, that I can imagine. It is not a first order issue for agriculture. Indeed, it is a tenth order issue for agriculture. I concede that it is an important question for the environment, because we have so eradicated our biodiversity in much of the south west corner of Western Australia that we have created an issue. Is it an issue for agriculture? It is not. I will tell you why, Mr President. In the past decade to decade and a half, the average amount of land clearing for agriculture has been fewer than 1 000 hectares. Do members have any idea how many hectares of cleared farmland there are in Western Australia and how minuscule 1 000 hectares is in relation to that? It is a tiny issue. It is not an issue for agriculture, full stop. Several members interjected. Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
The PRESIDENT: Order! I remind the Leader of the House that this is not an opportunity to provide a ministerial statement, although the leader may want to indicate that he will give a ministerial statement at the appropriate time, which is not now. Hon KIM CHANCE replied: I thank the President for his advice. However, there is very broad scope to answer this question as the question was broad in nature. If the Western Australian Farmers Federation and the Pastoralists and Graziers Association have little better to do with their time than make an issue of this matter, I am very surprised. Land clearing is probably the most overblown question, by both sides, that I can imagine. It is not a first order issue for agriculture. Indeed, it is a tenth order issue for agriculture. I concede that it is an important question for the environment, because we have so eradicated our biodiversity in much of the south west corner of Western Australia that we have created an issue. Is it an issue for agriculture? It is not. I will tell you why, Mr President. In the past decade to decade and a half, the average amount of land clearing for agriculture has been fewer than 1 000 hectares. Do members have any idea how many hectares of cleared farmland there are in Western Australia and how minuscule 1 000 hectares is in relation to that? It is a tiny issue. It is not an issue for agriculture, full stop. Several members interjected. Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
Hon KIM CHANCE replied: I thank the President for his advice. However, there is very broad scope to answer this question as the question was broad in nature. If the Western Australian Farmers Federation and the Pastoralists and Graziers Association have little better to do with their time than make an issue of this matter, I am very surprised. Land clearing is probably the most overblown question, by both sides, that I can imagine. It is not a first order issue for agriculture. Indeed, it is a tenth order issue for agriculture. I concede that it is an important question for the environment, because we have so eradicated our biodiversity in much of the south west corner of Western Australia that we have created an issue. Is it an issue for agriculture? It is not. I will tell you why, Mr President. In the past decade to decade and a half, the average amount of land clearing for agriculture has been fewer than 1 000 hectares. Do members have any idea how many hectares of cleared farmland there are in Western Australia and how minuscule 1 000 hectares is in relation to that? It is a tiny issue. It is not an issue for agriculture, full stop. Several members interjected. Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
I thank the President for his advice. However, there is very broad scope to answer this question as the question was broad in nature. If the Western Australian Farmers Federation and the Pastoralists and Graziers Association have little better to do with their time than make an issue of this matter, I am very surprised. Land clearing is probably the most overblown question, by both sides, that I can imagine. It is not a first order issue for agriculture. Indeed, it is a tenth order issue for agriculture. I concede that it is an important question for the environment, because we have so eradicated our biodiversity in much of the south west corner of Western Australia that we have created an issue. Is it an issue for agriculture? It is not. I will tell you why, Mr President. In the past decade to decade and a half, the average amount of land clearing for agriculture has been fewer than 1 000 hectares. Do members have any idea how many hectares of cleared farmland there are in Western Australia and how minuscule 1 000 hectares is in relation to that? It is a tiny issue. It is not an issue for agriculture, full stop. Several members interjected. Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
Several members interjected. Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
The PRESIDENT: Order! I remind the Leader of the House that this is not an opportunity to provide a ministerial statement, although the leader may want to indicate that he will give a ministerial statement at the appropriate time, which is not now. Hon KIM CHANCE replied: I thank the President for his advice. However, there is very broad scope to answer this question as the question was broad in nature. If the Western Australian Farmers Federation and the Pastoralists and Graziers Association have little better to do with their time than make an issue of this matter, I am very surprised. Land clearing is probably the most overblown question, by both sides, that I can imagine. It is not a first order issue for agriculture. Indeed, it is a tenth order issue for agriculture. I concede that it is an important question for the environment, because we have so eradicated our biodiversity in much of the south west corner of Western Australia that we have created an issue. Is it an issue for agriculture? It is not. I will tell you why, Mr President. In the past decade to decade and a half, the average amount of land clearing for agriculture has been fewer than 1 000 hectares. Do members have any idea how many hectares of cleared farmland there are in Western Australia and how minuscule 1 000 hectares is in relation to that? It is a tiny issue. It is not an issue for agriculture, full stop. Several members interjected. Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
Hon KIM CHANCE replied: I thank the President for his advice. However, there is very broad scope to answer this question as the question was broad in nature. If the Western Australian Farmers Federation and the Pastoralists and Graziers Association have little better to do with their time than make an issue of this matter, I am very surprised. Land clearing is probably the most overblown question, by both sides, that I can imagine. It is not a first order issue for agriculture. Indeed, it is a tenth order issue for agriculture. I concede that it is an important question for the environment, because we have so eradicated our biodiversity in much of the south west corner of Western Australia that we have created an issue. Is it an issue for agriculture? It is not. I will tell you why, Mr President. In the past decade to decade and a half, the average amount of land clearing for agriculture has been fewer than 1 000 hectares. Do members have any idea how many hectares of cleared farmland there are in Western Australia and how minuscule 1 000 hectares is in relation to that? It is a tiny issue. It is not an issue for agriculture, full stop. Several members interjected. Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
I thank the President for his advice. However, there is very broad scope to answer this question as the question was broad in nature. If the Western Australian Farmers Federation and the Pastoralists and Graziers Association have little better to do with their time than make an issue of this matter, I am very surprised. Land clearing is probably the most overblown question, by both sides, that I can imagine. It is not a first order issue for agriculture. Indeed, it is a tenth order issue for agriculture. I concede that it is an important question for the environment, because we have so eradicated our biodiversity in much of the south west corner of Western Australia that we have created an issue. Is it an issue for agriculture? It is not. I will tell you why, Mr President. In the past decade to decade and a half, the average amount of land clearing for agriculture has been fewer than 1 000 hectares. Do members have any idea how many hectares of cleared farmland there are in Western Australia and how minuscule 1 000 hectares is in relation to that? It is a tiny issue. It is not an issue for agriculture, full stop. Several members interjected. Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
Several members interjected. Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
Hon KIM CHANCE: Members should let me finish. It does not have relevance to those things that challenge agriculture. The question of land clearing is about a fiftieth order issue. It is not an important issue. I concede that it is certainly an important issue for individuals and I will always try to be sympathetic to their cases, as individuals know. However, frankly, it is not an issue that deserves the time that the PGA and WAFF have devoted to it.
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