Agriculture

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• Reduce the burden government spending to take pressure off interest rates, inflation, and the currency.
• Continue streamlining the RMA to make it easier for responsible farmers to use their own land to its potential.
• Continue opposing the inclusion of biological emissions in the ETS and ultimately dump it. (more here)

• Ensure a fairer approach to trade by encouraging local production and consumption.
• Reduce dependency on oil, agrichemicals and imported grains. This will be achieved through the development of sustainable biofuels; encouraging the use of non-chemical methods of production to promote the reduction of agrichemical use; funding more research to support farmers away from fossil fuel supported agriculture; and by increasing New Zealand’s self-sufficiency in basic foodstuffs.
• Promote the growth of the organic sector through the promotion of various organic certification bodies and by encouraging investment in organic farming methods and consumer awareness.
• Encourage sustainability through promoting sustainable use of rural land; protecting New Zealand’s rural water quality and supply; and managing chemical trespass and spray drift.
• Keeping New Zealand GE free and improving biosecurity.
• Strengthen rural communities through development of infrastructure and education.
• Promote rural-urban linkages and managing public access.
• Ensure the humane treatment of animals through the establishment of a Commissioner of Animal Welfare and the phasing out of inhumane farming practice. (more here)

• Labour will reverse the current approach to overseas sales of land. The onus will be on potential foreign purchasers to prove they offer additional value to the country from the land transfer. These rules will apply to sales of rural land over 5 hectares.
• Labour will also introduce a general ministerial discretion covering all assets worth more than $100 million that are not covered by our new farm land or monopoly infrastructure rules, modelled on the Australian equivalent.
• Labour will reform monetary policy to ensure our exporters are not undermined by extreme exchange fluctuations, including by broadening the objectives of the Reserve Bank Act. Currently its sole focus is on the maintenance of price stability – or inflation. We agree with the approach taken by Australia that recognises that along with inflation control, employment, economic prosperity, and the health of the export sector are at least as important.
• Labour will commission independent investigations of industry sector structures to ensure New Zealand can maximise the value from New Zealand production systems.
• Labour will assist and facilitate industry restructure where clear support for change from a majority of sector producers can be demonstrated.
• Labour will review the Primary Growth Partnership grants scheme, while appreciating the need to give the industry certainty around the structure of R&D funding. It is important that funding supports scientific research and Labour’s objectives to improve primary sector sustainability and value.
• Labour will commit $16 million to the Sustainable Farming Fund, to be funded by reprioritisation from the Primary Growth Partnership, and maintain its wider funding criteria.
• Labour will reinstate a 12.5% R&D tax credit available to all businesses in the agriculture sector to drive innovation, efficiency and growth in value. (more here)

• Develop a land transition plan which will include regulation of farming practices to reduce environmental damage, improve the quality of waterways, increase localised food self-sufficiency and reduce dependency on export agricultural production.
• Protect New Zealanders’ rights to save heritage seeds and exchange food.
• Develop alternative food production, ownership and distribution methods to free New Zealanders from the clutches of international food companies and local supermarket chains. (more here)

Not set out on their website.

• Establishment of the Primary Growth Partnership, Global Research Alliance, and the NZ Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Research Centre; reforming the Crown REsearch institutes to focus on growth; deffered the entry of agricultural emissions into the ETS untill 2015.
• $400m proposal for future investment for equity in regional irrigation projects. (more here)
• Provide $35 million from the Irrigation Acceleration Fund (IAF) to support the development of irrigation proposals.
• Provide up to $400 million from the Future Investment Fund for the Crown Water Investment Company.
• Review the 1 January 2015 legislated entry of agricultural emissions into the ETS in 2014. (more here)

• Undertake an immediate review of all legislation and regulations that impose coercive powers and administrative burdens on farmers to ensure their impact is minimised, consistent with the overall public interest.
• Upgrade the BIZ website and hotline, so that farmers can make enquiries relating to any government department using a single point of contact, and have their queries answered by staff from these departments (e.g. Department of Labour, Occupational Health and Safety, IRD, ACC).
• Continue to increase agricultural workforce skills by encouraging more people into industry training e.g. through modern apprenticeships in the agriculture and horticulture sectors. (more here)