New Agriculture Minister Jackie Jarvis hits the ground running

THE State's freshly-minted Agriculture and Food Minister is looking forward to "getting on with the job" and building on the work of her predecessors.

In a cabinet reshuffle last week Labor MP for the South West, Jackie Jarvis, replaced the retiring Alannah MacTiernan and was also named Minister for Forestry and Small Business.

The co-owner of a vineyard with her husband in Margaret River and a mother of three, Ms Jarvis said it was an enormous privilege to join Premier Mark McGowan's cabinet and she felt fortunate to be following a minister who had "elevated agriculture to the public consciousness".

"As a farmer and regional businesswoman, I have a long career advocating for communities in the bush through my work as CEO of the WA Rural, Regional and Remote Women's Network, as well as my time as commissioner for the Forest Products Commission and on the boards of the South West Development Commission and Australian Landcare Council," Ms Jarvis said.

"I look forward to getting started in these important portfolios and continuing to be a strong voice for our regional communities."

In a press conference following her appointment Ms Jarvis was quick to state her support for the live export sheep trade.

"It's an important part of the mix... and the Premier has already outlined the WA government's policy on that," Ms Jarvis said.

A relative newcomer, having been sworn into parliament in May last year, Ms Jarvis was keen for briefings so she was across the latest issues in her portfolios.

"I had 25 years working in agribusiness...I've worked constructively with the former presidents of WAFarmers and PGA (Pastoralists and Graziers' Association of WA), along with all the other groups - Western Dairy, Vegetables WA and the fruit sector, so I'm more than confident I already have those networks in place," she said.

Commenting on the appointments of Ms Jarvis and Wanneroo MLA and former teacher Sabine Winton to his cabinet, Mr McGowan said they were accomplished and hard working women who had the experience and wherewithal to be good ministers.

"Jackie was Rural Woman of the Year in 2014 for some of her work with refugees in the farming industry across the State and has worked in a range of agricultural areas in the wine industry, grains and a range of others, so she is ideally suited to become the Minister for Agriculture and Food," Mr McGowan said.

With the State caucus having an equal number of male and female members, he said the government had purposely lifted female representation in parliament to improve equality.

While the reshuffle means there are 11 men and 6 women in cabinet, Mr McGowan said the two new ministerial appointments had most importantly been based on the women having, "the right skill sets, the right ability, the right background, the right work ethic to do the job".

"Jackie is a successful businesswoman and farmer...great experience for coming into a ministerial role," Mr McGowan said.

Following the cabinet dumping of Dave Kelly, Simone McGurk was announced as the new Water Minister.

"The water portfolio will involve the investment of about $2 billion in a new desalination plant and the provision of water to households and businesses around the State," Mr McGowan said.

"Simone has done an excellent job in difficult portfolios over the course of the past six years and she is going into an economic role which I think is terrific."

In response to the reshuffle, The Nationals WA agriculture and food spokesman Colin de Grussa said the government had long neglected the agricultural sector and it was time for Ms Jarvis to step up and repair the relationship.

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"The Premier and his government were missing in action as the sector faced the threat of FMD (foot and mouth disease) and the Premier continues to offer no firm commitment to the future of the live export industry," Mr de Grussa said.

"The minister must advocate for live export to continue and they must consider the best solutions to address challenges faced by the sector, including worker shortages."

Opposition leader Mia Davies saw red over the government's announcement that four new parliamentary secretary roles had been created with pay rises of more than $23,000 each.

"WA's hard-working police and nurses are yet to see an improved pay and conditions deal on the table," Ms Davies said.

"With such a huge surplus in the State's bank account, the Premier could and should have done more to support our frontline workers by providing better wages and conditions".

WHO IS JACKIE JARVIS?

Ms Jarvis relocated from Perth to Margaret River in 1996 where she founded Jarvis Estate Vineyard with her husband, Matt, who now manages the vineyard.

In a Farm Weekly interview last year, she said like other farmers, they had experienced years where they lost crops and had to deal with uncertainty.

"Our years in farming have taught us resilience and how to adapt to change," Ms Jarvis said.

With a background in the banking industry, after the youngest of their three children began school, Ms Jarvis forged a career in workforce development for the agricultural sector, connecting farmers to mainly backpacker workers through the Commonwealth government funded Harvest Trail program.

"I had been managing our onfarm HR and understood the challenges of managing a seasonal workforce for many years and I was able to successfully apply that experience to a new career," she said.

Ms Jarvis worked for what was formerly the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia, from August 2016 and after the State election in March 2017 was seconded to Ms MacTiernan's office, serving as her policy adviser for nine months and left that role to become the RRR Women's Network of WA's chief executive officer.

In August 2019 Ms Jarvis was offered a position with the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development in the agribusiness development team and stepped down from that role in December 2020 when she was preselected as an election candidate and formally resigned immediately after the March 2021 State election.

Ms Jarvis joined the WA Labor Party in 2005 and contested the seat of Forrest in the 2010 Federal election but was defeated by Liberal MP Nola Marino.

"I came from a working-class background - my mum was a cleaner and my dad was a builder's labourer - and I saw value in ensuring all workers had secure and safe workplaces," Ms Jarvis said.

"I also felt the Labor party was best placed to ensure that everyone in our community had the chance to contribute to our society in a dignified and constructive way."