Legislative Council, Wednesday 22 May 2024

Ms FORREST (Murchison) - Mr President, this Appropriation (Further Supplementary Appropriation for 2023-24) Bill is the second such bill we have seen in this financial year. This one is asking us to approve a supplementary appropriation of $82.05 million from the public account for this financial year, of which there is really only a few weeks left. So, there is a bit that needs to be spent in that time.

Of this amount, $74 million represents an operating services appropriation to Finance-General. This amount is to be applied for the purpose of delivering the government's commitment to pay a supercharged - I do not know why we have to use such stupid words - but supercharged, like you are going to plug your car into it, renewable energy dividend, maybe they will, of $250 to households and $300 for small businesses including embedded network customers.

Now, let us welcome in the current cost-of-living pressures crisis many people are facing. It is not means tested, it is across the board, a bit like the federal government budget commitment regarding the $300 to all customers.

I understand the reasons for doing a broad scale thing for delivering it. That is not so much the question. It comes back to how this additional payment has or will be appropriated, based on where it has come from.

We know from the government's comments, election promises, commitments and things like that, there was a decision to pay more back to the customer if Hydro Tasmania made super profits perhaps, as opposed to supercharged.

We also saw in the revised estimates report a figure of $73.8 million, very close to $74 million, which is what is being appropriated, as a bit of a windfall from Hydro Tasmania, which is fine. Hydro Tasmania has had some really good operating conditions. It had operated the market as it should and we want it to, because when it does, we get money.

I know there is a bit of a misunderstanding about some of this too. If I looked at the National Electricity Market website right now, I reckon we are paying negative prices at the moment. We, being Hydro Tasmania, the people who buy power on our behalf across the link, that is Basslink.

I should have done it before I came to speak. You will probably find if you hopped on there now, you we are paying negative prices, which means we are being paid to take the power from the mainland. Sensible. Then we will still bank our water, except for the water we cannot bank obviously, like the run of river stuff. We will then sell into the high-priced market when it is dark, no sun shining and no wind blowing in South Australia and places like that. That is how it actually works.

Hydro Tasmania has had from last year's budget or the budget year we are currently in, to the revised estimate report released in February, a favourable operating situation where it is expected to pay, according to the RER and the policy and parameter statement, $73.8 million more in dividends than was expected.

In the briefing, and I appreciate the briefing. It is always helpful to have briefings. I am sure the new members would find them particularly helpful. But to me, that figure is very close. The member for Nelson asked some good questions in the briefing about the breakdown of what goes into consolidated revenue from dividends. That is what they are for - they are to go to consolidated revenues to help us pay for health services, education, public safety; all those things. There is also a component of budget repair.

I am hoping the Leader in her response can provide a full breakdown of how the extra $73.8 million in the Revised Estimates Report [RER] is factored into this figure - or not - and how that works. I hope I have covered the member for Nelson's concerns fairly well; but you do need to look at some of these other financial reports and try to track it.

Anyway, it should be a welcome payment for people. There are so many people struggling at the moment to pay energy bills and to pay all sorts of bills. It is a one-off, as I understand it. I understand from the government that Hydro Tasmania makes more than $90 million above that in dividends being paid to the state, and there will be a portion back in that three-year period. These are questions obviously that could be further explored in in this year's Budget when we get there in September. We will talk about that more in the supply bills.

I assume this means the entire extra dividend reported in the revised Estimates reports from Hydro Tasmania will be entirely expended on this item. If I am wrong, I am happy to be corrected on that; but the figures - it's a $200,000 difference in a lot of money - so, nothing. That is the question and a breakdown. I do not think anyone is going to argue against helping people out at this particular point in time, and I am certainly not. I am pleased to see Hydro Tasmania making the money to notionally give back - whether or not some people need it, which I probably do not; the same with the federal one.

I also note and welcome the additional operating services appropriation of $8.05 million for the Department of State Growth for the purpose of administering two grant programs: The King and Flinders Islands Primary Producers - Seasonal Conditions Scheme and the Mainland Tasmania Livestock Producers - Seasonal Conditions Scheme to provide relief to eligible primary production livestock businesses on King and Flinders Island and mainland Tasmania that have had unexpected and extended dry periods.

King Island has always been considered a drought-proof island. It has been extraordinary to visit there in recent times and to see it looked like a desert. I did not believe I could see it like it was. It was so dry it was not even brown; it was just grey. The wallabies are going to stop breeding for a bit, I imagine. It was extraordinary. The pressure on the farmers who have come off about three good years and have invested in their and businesses, and they have stocked heavily, because they had the pasture on this drought-proof island. Well, climate change is changing things.

King Island missed all the rain. Wynyard east got it in August, September. King Island got nothing, the tip of Circular Head got nothing. It is extraordinary to see that weather pattern the way it was and so unusual. People are caught short in that; and then we have the challenge of being an island, with a ship that is not fit for purpose, struggling to adequately destock in a timely manner where the conditions prevail. Thankfully we had Warren Dick and I will commend him on stepping into the void there and helping to get cattle north. Once things start drying off in on the Tasmania mainland there was no point trying to shift cattle this way as much, because abattoirs only were at capacity and could not take any more.

So, what do you do? It has been an extraordinary period. I was over there not that long ago after we had two millimetres of rain here and there and it had greened up. It is amazing how quickly it greened up. Drive through the Midlands now, it is green; but I bet if I went and looked at the grass, there would not be many more than two shoots on a lot of it. The problem there is, that whilst it looks green, the green is superficial.

Green shoots are a problem for farmers on King Island because if you allow cattle onto the paddock to eat the green shoots, they will inevitably get rye grass staggers. If anyone has seen a cow with rye grass staggers, it is not pretty. It affects their nervous system; they stagger about, and they can die. It can have serious consequences for the animal. You cannot let them back on the paddock until the grass has grown out a bit. It does not appear to adversely affect the large number of wallabies, sadly. It would be a bit easier if they got the staggers; but they do not appear to. The wallabies can go in there and clean up the new shoots, but the cattle cannot.

We have this little bit of growth; the weather is quickly cooling off; thus the growth is slow. I know the member for Prosser would have plenty of rural areas; the member for McIntyre has plenty of rural areas, and she also has Flinders Island. I was also talking to people on Flinders Island at times, when we were trying to get some support for both islands; but it has been extraordinarily difficult.

We are seeing the very real impacts of climate change right here in our beautiful state of Tasmania, and it is not good. Sadly, some farmers on King Island have lost cattle as they become bogged in the almost dry dams. They are looking for this tiny bit of water that is left in the middle of this mud puddle and get bogged. The farmers will try and get them out, but sometimes they will break their legs. Farmers know what this is about and it is tragic. No farmer wants to see a beast die under these circumstances.

Also, some of the farmers have tried, with the support of the Department of State Growth - and I have worked with the department to try to achieve this - to let their cattle graze the road verges where there has been a bit of feed there. They have been grazing the coastal areas. However, little did they know there is a toxic plant out there that, once the cows ate, they died. Farmers have lost cattle from eating this toxic plant they did not know would kill them. I have got one farmer over there who rang me pretty much in tears. We have been quite concerned about him. He lost $60,000 worth in bulls and breeding stock. This is real, it is serious, and it is not over yet.

I appreciate the work the government has done in trying to facilitate that and I have had a very good response from the Department of State Growth in trying to manage some of this and from the previous minister, when the member for Rosevears was the minister. It also highlights the absolute failure that our shipping service is. I will give credit where credit is due in a moment on that though; there is some credit to be paid, and I will do it.

The constant call to destock early on had not been easy due to the shipping issues that I have mentioned and the lack of a regular north-bound service, and the need to keep breeding cattle on the island. Not only that, we had a lot of pregnant cattle on the island, and you cannot ship pregnant cattle at a certain point.

It was interesting talking to the vets over there; the strike rate from the artificial insemination over there was very high. You have skinny cows that are pregnant and cannot be shipped, and then they are trying to lactate. We can see the perfect storm here.

When other cattle become too thin or unwell they cannot be shipped; certainly, a cow with rye grass staggers cannot be shipped. Sadly, I am aware of some farmers who had to shoot their own cattle in the field. That is the most difficult and heartbreaking thing for any farmer to do. If anyone does not fully appreciate the challenge, they should visit and talk to the farmers themselves, they will tell you.

I commend the work of Need for Feed and Lions Australia and Warren Dick from Eastern Line Shipping, for the huge amount of time, effort and commitment that has gone into the delivery of hay and stock feed. If anyone has been watching Need for Feed on Facebook, there has been a constant stream of posts. I do not know how many trucks, a great convoy of trucks completely loaded with hay and pellets from around Victoria going to Port Welshpool to be shipped across by Warren Dick. Some may remember a certain member for McIntyre, Les Dick, his late father who was a bit of a character, a bit of a rogue, a bit rough around the edges, you might say

Ms Rattray - His heart was always in the right place.

Ms FORREST - Absolutely. And Warren is soft around the edges. He is a very good man and he worked really hard with Need for Feed and Lions Australia to facilitate him leaving Bridport completely empty on his ship, a cost of going to Port Welshpool completely empty, picking up all the hay.

Ms Rattray - Some 500 bales.

Ms FORREST - They had to leave a few because they were not good. I have the number of bags of pellets here. He offered to do that at his cost, which is significant. In recent times, and I spoke to State Growth about this, about the need for it to step into this space. The government has stepped in with $75,000 to assist in that cost of freight. I hope that does go to Mr Dick, because he is the one who has incurred that cost, as well as Need for Feed, which has incurred costs in transporting the truck freight on the Victorian side, getting all that hay and pellets collected and delivered to the port. There are costs with that. Originally, they were going to Cape Otway, that is another story. There was another truck/freight leg that needed to occur there.

I commend them. I know the government has been working to try to get Colac and Port Otway to be a viable option. There have been other complications with that which is now tied up in a legal matter, so I will not go near that. But, it is these three bodies particularly that have really made this happen. I thank the government now for stepping up.

I also acknowledge that Bass Island Line and the local TasPorts staff, the King Island TasPorts staff - I am making that distinction - have worked very closely with the members of the community there. They allowed non-stevedores and non-port people or employees to assist in the unloading of that vessel.

They also changed their shipping date for the Bass Island Line to come in on Saturday rather than Sunday, their usual day. I give credit to that too. It tells me it can be done. Other times when it might need to be done, let us not forget it has been done. Often, Bass Island Line has been in, Eastern Shipping Line or even David Harris with his vessel, had to stand off, either go to Naracoopa or stand off and wait and be pushed out of port and while Bass Island Line comes in and stays there.

I am so glad I was not on the Eastern Line shipping vessel on the way across from Port Welshpool to King Island because they were punching into three-metre swells and 40-knot westerly winds. I saw some footage, and I was pleased I was not on that ship. I would not have got on it the first place because I do not do ships and the sea very well.

I thank the incredible crew of seven on that vessel. I am happy not to be one of them. I thank Warren Dick for his commitment to the farmers and the people of King Island, acknowledging they are a very important part of his business; there are no two ways about that.

I acknowledge the volunteers from Need for Feed and Lions Australia, and the various Lions clubs who provided food, back up and support all the way along this journey. They have done an incredible job, and the people who actually make donations to Need for Feed, because that is how they buy the hay. Most hay is not donated; they buy it with the money that is donated to them. I thank them for that, and I acknowledge the local King Island TasPorts staff. They have enabled over 500 bales of hay and 200 one-tonne bags of stock feed pellets to be delivered around the island. Thanks also to the King Island Lions Club, which puts on a massive celebration of this.

We have had some broken people on the island, distressed farmers. You know the impact on mental health of these sorts of things. This was a big community event. I have a video made by Wade Roskam, from King Island Radio. He is a musician as well as a radio announcer. If you want me to send you the link to the video he put together with a song, it is fantastic. I am happy to share it. It is something that probably will be shared far and wide; it is beautiful, and the whole community came together. I thank the Lions Club of King Island for its work.

I reiterate that support the government has now provided, $75,000 toward the cost of freight. These things make a real difference, and the community is very grateful, and I am very grateful that the government has done that for this community.

I am sure other members will comment on other areas of interest in this bill. Those are the key points I wanted to make. It has been a tough time on King Island and Flinders Island, and parts of central Tasmania, and in parts of the north-west. The government made these decisions during the caretaker mode. They had to be made then, because things were desperate during that period. We are now appropriating this money so that it can be passed through.

With regard to some other points, the $2.5 million to be provided as an initial grant to the Devonport City Council towards its sports infrastructure priority investment plan, Building a Sporting Legacy, that is part of a larger bucket of money: I asked the question in the briefing and I am sure the Leader will be able to respond to this - I assume that it is fully expected that $2.5 million is expended in this financial year for that project? Also, the FermenTasmania funding as well, that that would be expended in this financial year? Otherwise, we would be waiting for the next budget. If it is not to be spent this year, I am seeking clarity that it is expected that money will be spent. There are not many weeks left to do it. Maybe they have already spent some.

With those comments I am happy to support the intent of this bill by all means, but I would like the Leader to address her mind to that energy supercharge thing, and also those other matters I have raised.