LNP should listen to Turnbull and the Harper Competition Review

Queensland Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries Bill Byrne noted the release of the Turnbull-Truss Government’s response to the Harper Competition Review, particularly concerning the regulatory barriers in primary production.

“The Queensland Liberal National Party should take heed of the Harper Review and the Federal Government’s response,” Minister Byrne said.

“The Turnbull Government’s response advocated the removal of competition inhibiting regulations while the Queensland Liberal National Party wants to tie the sugar industry up in red tape with their radical re-regulation proposal.

“Competition restrictions in primary industries puts jobs and trade investment at risk. The Queensland LNP want to use the heavy hand of the old National party protectionism.

“The radical proposal from the Queensland Liberal National Party to drastically re-regulate the Queensland sugar industry cuts against the basis of thirty years of micro-economic reform in Australia. It is against what the Turnbull Government has said in response to the Harper Review.

“It is time the Turnbull Government intervened and pulled the economic vandals in charge of the Queensland LNP into line and ended this sugar regulation madness,” Minister Byrne said.

The re-regulation bill before parliament next week contains an exemption for the bill’s provisions from competition law.

The Federal Government agreed with the recommendation of the Harper Review

which said legislation should not restrict competition unless it can be demonstrated that: 

• the benefits of the restriction to the community as a whole outweigh the costs; and

• the objectives of the legislation can only be achieved by restricting competition.

The Federal Government’s response agreed with recommendation eight that state governments should be removing unnecessary regulatory barriers to competition as well as reviewing exemptions for conduct that would contravene competition law.

ENDS

Media Contact: Michelle Connolly 0478 325 738