07 July 2011 in Media
The Coalition has introduced a Private Member’s Bill to safeguard Australia’s apples against fire blight in response to the Gillard Government’s decision to import apples from New Zealand.
The Prime Minister’s decision to allow apple imports from New Zealand has raised significant concerns within the $50 million Adelaide Hills apple and pear industry throughout the Mayo electorate, as it will potentially expose our produce to greater risk of pests that are foreign to our shores.
Australia’s robust, science-based quarantine protections must not be compromised. The Governments bid to rubber stamp New Zealand apples into Australia, without the same checks applied to other countries sets a dangerous precedent.
The Coalition is concerned with the lapsing state of quarantine and bio-security in Australia, which is why we have put forward the Quarantine Legislation Amendment (Apples) Bill 2011, a Bill which makes a permit to import apples a disallowable instrument.
The Bill puts the Government and Biosecurity Australia on notice that the Parliament will hold them to account if they are not properly protecting our clean food industry.
The Governments reckless pursuit of the importation of New Zealand apples without adequate management of the risk of fire blight could be dire for our nation’s apple producers.