Katter: GrainCorp sell-off will skin Aussie farmers alive KAP Federal Leader and Federal Member for Kennedy Bob Katter today gave notice that he would co-sponsor legislation into the Australian Parliament, to stop the sale of Australia’s largest listed agri-business GrainCorp to foreign owners. The Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Amendment Bill 2013 directs the Treasurer to make an order prohibiting a controlling share of GrainCorp being sold to foreign persons. “We’ve privatised all of our Australian industries, except for the grain industry. “Australia is the biggest barley exporter in the world; it is the second biggest canola and wheat exporter in the world; and it is the third biggest sorghum exporter in the world. “If the sale of GrainCorp goes ahead the majority of Australia’s wheat export ports, infrastructure and the handling supply chain will be in foreign hands,” Mr Katter said. Today, Mr Katter joined other crossbenchers including Deputy Leader of the Greens and Federal Member for Melbourne Adam Bandt, Leader of Palmer United Party and Federal Member for Fairfax Clive Palmer and Independent Member for Denison Andrew Wilkie to stop the sale and prevent a foreign monopoly being imposed on Australian grain growers. The monopolist can pay you whatever he feels like paying you. “ADM’s (Archer Daniels Midland) only priority here is to maximise its profits and there is only one way to do that - cut the price paid to the grain farmer. “In this monopolistic market grain farmers, like the dairymen before them, will be skinned alive whilst yet again foreigners will pocket every year approximately over $1b of extra profit. “If the grain growers have any doubts that their fate will be different let them have a conversation with the dairy industry, let them have a conversation with the sugar producers, let them have a conversation with any of the other agriculturalists that have been in industries that are now beholden to foreign monopolist power. “The results in these industries are quite horrific and that is what is going to happen to our Australian grain industry. Mr Katter’s comments follow warnings from one of the oldest farm organisations in the US that increased concentration in the industry will hurt competition and is bad news Australian farmers. “We’ve sold off Cubby Station, Australia’s largest land holding and water licence to foreigners and we’ve sold off the Ord irrigation land in WA’s north which was subsidised by almost $600m of taxpayer money. “This just reiterates to Australians that the ALP-LNP ‘corporations’ running this country are intent on selling out the Australian people,” Mr Katter said. Treasurer Joe Hockey needs to make a decision regarding ADM’s $3.4 billion offer to purchase GrainCorp by December 17.
Posted on: Wed, 20 Nov 2013 07:01:41 +0000
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