ACTION is needed now to stop all of the political parties wrecking farming in various ways, writes JIM CROWE
We need Murray Darling Basin independents standing up for irrigation and dryland farming communities across Australia.
Farmers need to have a direct say on all legislation in Canberra that affects them.
Australia is the only country in the world where farmers do not have a strong lobbying influence on parliament.
We must take direct action now to stop the Liberal, ALP, National and Green parties from demolishing farming with coal-seam gas potentially poisoning the Great Artesian Basin and open-cut coal mine projects in prime farm land and GM contaminants.
Mining will come and go but farming will be here forever.
The Murray-Darling system operated for thousands of years before Hume and Dartmouth and other dams were built: the Murray and Darling rivers would have stopped flowing during many seasons.
We need to stand independent candidates in every irrigation and dryland electorate across Australia, particularly from the mouth of the Murray to Queensland. This is a time for every farmer to stand together and let the major political parties know that they've had a gutful of Canberra treating them with absolute contempt.
If we can get at least 10 independents in parliament it will not matter if the Liberals, ALP, Nationals or Greens are in government, we will have the numbers to decide on all decisions that affect farming. We will let Canberra know that they have been treating farmers like peasants for way too long.
Let's get the ball rolling. Let's make sure we finish with the strongest farmers lobby in the world.
- Jim Crowe is a retired farmer from Swan Hill
