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Agriculture Environment and Water | August 29, 2016

Minister skips decision on Kangaroo Pet Food Trial Extension

Dear Editor,

I am writing to highlight the failure of Minister D’Ambrosio to extend the geographical area of the highly successful Kangaroo Pet Food Trial.

Despite the Minister’s talk about an “imminent” decision to extend the kangaroo pet food trial zone months ago, the Minister has failed to take any action to deliver on the Government’s promise to extend the trial area.

While the Minister dithers and delays making a decision that may offend inner-city voters, country people living in the Glenelg and West Wimmera Shire Council areas continue to bear the brunt of the plague numbers of kangaroos damaging their property, farmlands and vehicles.

I remind the Minister that the Government announced that the trial would be extended to test its sustainability over a longer period and to expand the geographical area, yet after six months Labor has failed to take any action to extend the trial area.

This is yet another example of Labor being all talk and no action.

The kangaroo pet food trial was established by the Nationals when in Government for an initial two year period, and following extensive lobbying by National Party MPs it was extended for a further two years until March 2018.

It is important to note, this trial has not increased the total number of kangaroos permitted to be harvested under licence. The trial has delivered many benefits to the local area, including stopping unnecessary waste, creation of over a dozen local jobs and development of a new niche market for high quality pet food. Extension of the trial area will only enhance these many flow-on benefits for Western Victoria.

Failure to extend the kangaroo pet food trial area is yet another example of a broken promise by the Andrew’s Labor Government which doesn’t understand nor care about country Victoria.

Emma Kealy MP

Member for Lowan