John Scrimgeour Federated Farmers BOP president

The national council of Federated Farmers met in Wellington last month and farm leaders from around the country got a taste of the capital at election time.

The Federation is in good heart, with the success of our election manifesto and a strong voice on agricultural issues throughout the election campaign.

By the time this column is published a new government will have been elected, after what has proved to be a very heated campaign and one which offered – as our national president Bruce Wills stated in his opening speech – the clearest policy choice since 1984.

Both the PM and leader of the opposition spoke at national council. At the time, it was actually refreshing to get into some major policy issues, such as the ETS and asset sales, without mention of the absurd saga of the ‘teapot tapes'.

Front and centre
It was certainly a challenge keeping agricultural policies front and centre through the election campaign. It's amazing our biggest export earners struggle to be heard at such a crucial time for New Zealand and the world economy, but there you go.

While positives from the election campaign were few, they were significant. A more mature debate occurred on the environment and particularly water and the challenge of managing this in conjunction with a growing economy. Debates at the fringes of logic, such as the controversy over the price of milk earlier this year, appropriately disappeared off the radar.

It continues, however, to be a major struggle to convince politicians and the wider public that farmers simply want to make a decent living and leave their farm in better condition than when they started with it. Acknowledgement of that is the real path to sustainability, but it would require a government of rare courage to roll back the regulatory approach of the RMA and other legislation.

Police agreement
Also featuring at National Council was a solid discussion on the letter of agreement recently signed by the Police Commissioner Peter Marshall and Federated Farmers.

The letter of agreement will promote a collaborative working relationship between the police and rural New Zealand through federated farmers.

The letter is an insight into the scope of Federated Farmers advocacy and support for rural people. Mostly we are known for the policies we advocate, but there is also great depth to our local networks that work to support and aid security of rural communities.
All the best for a safe holiday season.