Agriculture is not just another land use. Our farmers grow our food, support our regional economies and underpin communities right across Victoria. But under Labor farmland is seen as vacant land ripe for development.
Under Labor, productive farmland and property rights are under increasing pressure from poorly planned development, transmission infrastructure, renewable energy projects, mining and urban expansion.
That is why I introduced the Planning and Environment Amendment (Agricultural Land and Food Security) Bill 2026.
My bill provides legislative protections for strategic agricultural land, requires proper assessment of the agricultural impacts of major developments, puts agricultural expertise at the decision-making table and improves transparency around the cumulative loss of farmland, because once high-quality agricultural land is sterilised or fragmented we simply cannot get it back.
The Nationals are going further.
We will scrap Labor’s emergency services tax, stop VNI West, review Victoria’s transmission plan and renewable energy zones and scrap any project that does not stack up.
We will restore the farmer’s right to say no to entry on their land, cancel fines issued by VicGrid and tackle farm crime.
Labor across the chamber might not like this, but the Nationals will always stand up for rural and regional Victoria.
Farmers deserve a government that respects their land, their livelihoods and their property rights.
The Nationals will always stand up for farmers.
We will always stand up for rural and regional Victorians, we will always stand up for the right to farm and we will always stand up for Victoria’s fair share.