Support for farmers
The events in the dairy industry over the last few weeks have devastated the dairying community which has been left high and dry by the actions of Murray Goulburn and Fonterra. This situation has been a long time in the making. The supermarkets have contributed to pushing down the price of milk for some time. The deregulation of the industry has left dairy farmers vulnerable to volatility on the global market. We are now facing not only an economic but a mental health crisis in a community already at breaking point.
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I am writing to request that the federal government immediately create an emergency relief fund for those farmers hardest hit by the events of the last two weeks. I also request that the government work with the financial sector to minimise pressure placed on dairy farmers to repay outstanding debts in the immediate future.
I welcome the federal government’s announcement of its $13.8 million Farm Co-operatives and Collaboration Pilot Program to help farmers form cooperatives and adopt innovative business models. I encourage the federal government to mobilise these funds immediately in regions where it is most needed as a medium-term solution to empowering dairy farmers to control the supply chain and developing local markets that are willing to pay a fair price for high-quality dairy products.'
To show your support, email:
Federal Minister: Barnaby.Joyce.MP@aph.gov.au; Federal Shadow Minister: Joel.Fitzgibbon.MP@aph.gov.au or State Minister: jaala.pulford@parliament.vic.gov.au or Federal MP for Bendigo lisa.chesters.mp@aph.gov.au
Kelly Donati, Melbourne
Education needs focus
In relation to Contrasts in Policies for education Monday May 16 Bendigo Advertiser in comments made interesting reading.
Education, health and employment should be the forefront of election promises and funding. The only proper investigation into the needs of education has been the Gonski Report, but unfortunately was never taken seriously by the Coalition the same as Climate change. This has been an ongoing problem for some time.
Education has gone backwards since the late Joan Kirner and her government cut technical schools. The recently conducted Naplan Testing does nothing to achieve proper outcomes as not all students sit this test, it is voluntary and by the time (the buzz word data) is collected it then becomes irrelevant because results are released some months later. The great saviour for Education in Bendigo was going to be the introduction to the wiz bang Bendigo Education Plan which has turned out to be a great monumental disaster along with Ultranet, Dashboard and all these IT programs that don’t allow a teacher to teach.
It’s about ticking boxes being politically correct clearing obstacles jumping through hoops. Removing valuable time from teachers to be able to properly plan and deliver their lessons, go back to commonsense and let teachers teach the real values and life time skills that students will need to survive in this crazy unfair systems that each and everyone has to encounter.
And the building of another Technical School isn’t the answer and also proves that under the Bendigo Education Plan where they closed Golden Square SC. it appears that this shouldn’t have happened?
Ivan Kitt, Bendigo
- Letters commenting on election issues must bear the name and full address of the writer(s). Responsibility for election comment in this issue is accepted by Bendigo Advertiser editor Nicole Ferrie, 67-71 Williamson Street, Bendigo. Writers should disclose any alliance with political or community organisations and include their telephone number for verification. Election candidates should declare themselves as such when submitting letters.
