Live cattle exports resume in the hope that damage done is not long term
The lifting of the ban on live cattle exports to Indonesia is welcome, however the damage done by Labor’s knee jerk over reaction to a TV program may potentially be long term and significant, said Senator Scullion today.
“When the Gillard Labor Government announced an immediate ban on exports with no warning or advice to the Indonesian government, they not only crippled an important Australian industry, they breached international trade protocols by effectively sanctioning a foreign country with no notice.
“While Gillard is trying to play down or even ignore the diplomatic bungling, the potential consequences are very real,” said Senator Scullion.
Indonesian deputy agriculture minister Bayu Krisnamurthi is reported as warning that Jakarta is now rethinking its reliance on live cattle imports in the wake of the ban.
The report goes on to say that Indonesia's recent experiences with Australia show that depending on food imports is risky. *Ref ABC news Wed Jul 6, 2011 8:35pm AEST
“It was not a drought, a flood, pestilence or any other act of God that stopped the trade, it was an act of Gillard,” said Senator Scullion.
“Now that Australia is effectively considered by Indonesia as a risk to their food security, industry must rebuild their businesses and assure our trading partners in Indonesia that we are indeed a reliable supplier of high quality beef.
“The minister says that it is up to industry to fix the mess created by Labor.
“Given Gillard and her Labor government’s appalling and amateur actions to date, I suspect industry is more than happy for the Gillard government to get out of the way,” said Senator Scullion.
