Committee seeks sale answers

HISTORY is full of remarkable escapes from authorities, but few are as audacious as that of Casanova.

The Italian adventurer, professional gambler and man of leisure was imprisoned by Venetian authorities in 1755.

After more than a year in captivity, he escaped with a fellow prisoner through the roof of the Doge’s Palace, where they had been held by the Venetian authorities.

Having made their way back from the cell to the main palace, the pair convinced a guard they were gentlemen accidentally locked in overnight.

An extraordinary escape, and an example of eluding accountability.

Now, a Tasmanian Parliamentary Select Committee is not a trial to determine legal guilt. Its purpose is to investigate matters of public importance and inform future policy, legislation and governance.

Hearings are often open to the public. Committees can compel witnesses and request documents, and those giving evidence must not deliberately mislead them.

The House of Assembly has established such a committee to investigate Commonwealth decisions affecting agricultural land, including Rushy Lagoon, covering almost 22,000 hectares in the north-east.

Its sale and proposed conversion of about 9000 hectares of productive farmland to carbon farming has concerned farmers and the local community, particularly given the Commonwealth’s $69 million investment through the Clean Energy Finance Corporation and approval of another $8.8 million under the Support Plantation Establishment program for radiata pine seedlings.

The controversy raises a question extending beyond one property. Who gets to decide the future of Tasmania’s productive farmland, and whose interests are considered?

TasFarmers has made a comprehensive submission to the Select Committee, identifying what we believe are significant gaps in the processes surrounding the sale and use of taxpayer funds.

Rushy Lagoon shows what can happen when Commonwealth finance, carbon incentives, foreign investment approvals and major land-use changes operate without adequate transparency, consultation or consideration of their combined impact.

We are not arguing against carbon projects, forestry or environmental investment.

The issue is ensuring productive agricultural land, regional food production and local communities are considered when governments create strong financial incentives for changing land use.

Our submission raises concerns about agricultural production baselines, cumulative land-use change, the lack of consultation with affected communities, transparency around Commonwealth investments and whether Australian agricultural purchasers had a genuine opportunity to compete.

These are not unreasonable questions. We are talking about significant taxpayer funds and decisions with lasting consequences for agricultural production and regional communities.

That is precisely why parliamentary inquiries exist.

The committee gives those involved an opportunity to explain how decisions were reached, what advice was considered and whether Tasmania’s interests were properly taken into account.

TasFarmers believes three reforms are particularly important: genuine competitive neutrality where government funding is involved, mandatory consultation with affected agricultural industries and communities, and proper assessment of cumulative impacts on agricultural production and regional food security.

The Commonwealth has repeatedly indicated that protecting agricultural land from significant land-use change is a matter for Tasmania’s planning system. If so, Tasmania needs to examine whether its safeguards are sufficient.

The inquiry can identify what needs to change.

If the federal government genuinely believes this decision was in the region’s best interests, and all appropriate processes were followed, it should have no difficulty attending hearings, explaining its decisions and answering questions openly and truthfully.

Parliamentary scrutiny is not something to be escaped; when millions of dollars in taxpayer funds and the future of productive agricultural land are involved, answering questions should be a responsibility, not something to avoid.

The committee will hold hearings in Scottsdale on Wednesday, October 21 from 10.15am to 2pm, Hobart on October 30  from 9am to 11am, and November 6 from noon to 4pm, and in Launceston on November 5 from 12.30pm to 4pm. Venue details are yet to be announced.