The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) today welcomed important announcements and increased grants from the Federal and State Government.
VFF President David Jochinke said “the last twenty four hours have seen sensible and prudent initiatives that will further support the agricultural sector. I want to thank the Federal and State Government who have invested more than $410 million in the agricultural sector since the start of this pandemic crisis.”
This morning the Federal Government announced their decision to freeze the Heavy Vehicle Road User Charge at current levels. According to the Federal Government, the Road User Charge, will stay at 25.8 cents per litre for diesel in 2020-21 instead of increasing by the scheduled 2.5 per cent.
“Road freight is absolutely critical to the agricultural industry and the VFF has been seeking the freeze for some time”, said Mr Jochinke.
The Victorian Government’s Minister for Agriculture Jaclyn Symes yesterday announced the doubling of the On-Farm Drought Resilience Grant Program from $5,000 to $10,000. The Farm Machinery Grant Program for farmers in the Millewa region has also been extended. These grant programs are part of the Victorian Government’s $31 million support package announced late last year.
“We all know the difficult economic position the Victorian Government is in due to the Corona virus. In this environment, the Victorian Farmers Federation welcomes the much needed injection of funds.
“One of the most important positive things out of COVID-19 is the joined up thinking and bipartisanship across Government. Initiatives or policies that may have taken years to implement, are now agreed to in a matter of days. And we’ve been working with Government to ensure our industry can continue during this time but in post COVID-19 world, agriculture can be generator of the jobs and the produce that we need as well as make a significant contribution to our economy and help to restart our economy, Mr Jochinke said.
Media Contact:
David Jochinke, VFF President, 0427 834 524
Amelia Bitsis, VFF, 0439 827 604