Hanson calls for Ag Minister McKenzie’s resignation over dairy debacles
MEDIA RELEASE
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson is calling for National Party Senator Bridget McKenzie to resign as Agriculture Minister over her diabolical management of the draft mandatory dairy code of conduct and The Nationals’ refusal to back the Protecting Australian Dairy Bill.
Senator Hanson said the exposure draft of the code was very poorly written, not in plain English, was a significant departure from previous drafts, and failed to include the recommendations of the recent ACCC’s dairy inquiry.
She added that Minister McKenzie had also misled the public by quoting from a previous superceded code during an ABC radio interview on Monday, October 28, and during Question Time today.
“Senator McKenzie’s handling of this whole code issue has been diabolical, it’s an absolute dog’s breakfast,” Senator Hanson said.
“Her failures have been further aggravated when she refused to answer genuine questions in the Senate today in a frank and honest manner.
“It seems obvious to me that she has no interest in drafting a code that responds to the issues and gives dairy farmers surety in their struggling industry.
“I’ve said all along that she has a huge conflict of interest here – if she wants to be a senator representing Victoria, where some producers don’t want the code, fair enough, but the role of Minister is for all of Australia and she’s failing that role miserably.
“The Prime Minster stepped in to get the mandatory code drafted as a priority after I forced the issue.
“Senator McKenzie should resign from the agricultural portfolio immediately, for the sake of the dairy industry across Australia and agriculture generally.
“The Nationals have been desperately trying to claw back some respectability with farmers and the bush over this matter, even claiming they’re on top of things and have been working on the code for more than a year, but let’s see how keen they are to take responsibility for this mess today.
“In a radio interview last month, Senator McKenzie read from what was inferred was the new code, but it was actually the old code, and things have changed considerably in recent drafts, so she’s obviously not across her brief or she’s being deliberately misleading.
“I’m dumbfounded over what has been her incompetence on this matter; it beggars belief, so I think she has no option but to resign.”
Senator Hanson said the draft was so poorly written that it was possibly not drafted by the Office of Parliamentary Council.
“Senator McKenzie failed to clarify this properly in Question Time today,” Senator Hanson said.
“I’d like to know who drafted it and when – maybe it’s a rush job to make up for lost time.”
Senator Hanson was commenting over the exposure draft of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (Industry Code – Dairy).
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