Australian Dairy Farmers (ADF) has called on Federal Parliament to stop playing politics and end the uncertainty surrounding the backpacker tax by accepting a fairer tax rate of 19 per cent.
“It’s now been over two weeks since announcements were made to drop the proposed tax rate from 32.5 per cent to 19 per cent, a decision which we welcomed as a fair outcome to months of lobbying by the agricultural sector,” said ADF acting President, David Basham.
The announcement made today by the Labor Party to refer the backpacker tax to the Economics Committee is likely to further delay this outcome.
“In order for these measures to be meaningful they must be delivered now to make sure there is certainty for backpackers and employers,” Mr Basham said.
“ADF, together with state dairy farming organisations and the National Farmers’ Federation, have clearly communicated to all levels of Government that dairy farmers, and the broader dairy industry rely on backpackers for vital on-farm and off-farm roles which cannot be filled locally and complement our existing workforce during peak times.
“The impact has already been felt across the dairy sector and, for every day this issue remained unresolved, fewer working holiday makers will chose to live and work in rural Australia.
“The agricultural sector has come to the table in good faith and advocated for a fairer tax rate to be implemented.
“We continue to urge bipartisan support for the changes to be brought in ahead of the January 1 deadline.”
The Economics Committee will convene on November 7, 2016 to report their findings.
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