It is a new year and while Western Australian farmers remain hopeful the government has shown no signs of backing down from its industry decimating policy to phase-out live sheep exports by sea.
Nationals Leader David Littleproud said Agriculture Minister Murray Watt had committed to providing more certainty by the end of 2023, but instead had continued to treat WA farmers with contempt by hiding crucial reports in Cabinet.
He said the government was keeping the live sheep export industry in the dark in 2024.
The comments come after a Freedom of Information (FOI) request for a 230-page Independent Panel report into the consequences of phasing out the live sheep trade was denied in 2023, due to Cabinet-in-Confidence.
Mr Littleproud said Mr Watt needed to be transparent about the report in the new year, after a live sheep export phase-out panel travelled around WA, but failed to properly consult with the industry.
"I am incredibly disappointed that Labor sees fit to remain secretive about phasing out the live sheep export trade in 2024," Mr Littleproud said.
"If Agriculture Minister Murray Watt is so confident in his decision to phase out the industry, why won't he release details of the report?
"Labor is destroying the livelihoods of more than 3000 people who work in the trade and an industry worth $85 million."
Brookton producer, Ellen Walker, said farmers were worried about 2024.
"We are still in limbo land," she said.
"We were lucky enough to get some lambs on a boat to Saudi, in November, but we still have two-year-old wethers waiting for a boat and the price of everything, from mutton to lamb, has fallen," Ms Walker said.
"Two years ago it was $200 for ewes and lambs, now I'm lucky to get $100 a head for cross-bred lambs and $40 for ewes.
"There is no market for store sheep and to top it off feed prices are ridiculous - oats are now over $500 a tonne, hay is around $300 per tonne and pellets are over $400."
Farm groups have also written to Minister Watt, pleading for a reversal of the ban, saying the reopening of trade into Saudi Arabia and prevailing market conditions had increased the possibility for east coast exports.
The impact the policy has had on prices, farmer confidence and the future of the sheep industry in WA has been ignored, many who have been directly affected have said and they are angered that the Independent Panel report was not available.
They were also questioning why the Episode 3 report had not been released, yet a report by Pegasus Economics, commissioned for the same reason and entity, was available.
Pegasus, director Alistair Davey and managing director Roger Fisher, were contracted by the government to review existing economic studies on the Western Australian live sheep export industry.
In December Freedom of Information request gave public access to emails between Mr Davey and Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry representatives, along with the contract details and two completed documents assessing all previous economic reports on the WA live sheep export industry.
