Review of the Intergovernmental Agreement on Biosecurity

SUBMISSION

30 August 2024

Dr Michele Allan
Intergovernmental Agreement on Biosecurity Review
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
GPO Box 858
Canberra ACT 2601

Via email to: igabreview2024@aff.gov.au

Dear Sir/Madam,

Re: Is the Intergovernmental Agreement on Biosecurity effective and fit for the future?

Cattle Australia (CA) is the national peak body representing the interests of grass-fed beef cattle producers, providing a unified voice, industry leadership and policy direction. CA ensures grass-fed levies support grass-fed producers and a more productive and profitable industry. Our industry has much to be proud of with the national herd approaching 28 million head and 52,000 businesses, supporting 428,000 jobs, including processors, exporters and truck drivers. Cattle producers are the stewards of over 50% of the Australian landmass protecting and enhancing economic, social, cultural and environmental values for future generations.

CA fundamentally supports increased investment in biosecurity and acknowledges the timely increase in the Commonwealth budget. CA has worked, and will continue to work, with the
Department to ensure that this funding delivers maximum value and achieves the essential outcomes needed by our industry and the broader Australian community.

CA supports the shared vision of agriculture reaching its shared goal of $100 billion in production by
2030. Cattle makes the largest economic contribution to this target, and any biosecurity incursion threatens the entire shared vision. Australia exports around twice the volume of food that we consume. This trade is reliant upon our disease-free status and our high biosecurity standards.

To achieve our goals, we invest as an industry in the very best of science and utilise future focused technology, particularly, the very best veterinary science. We also require Governments, both state and Commonwealth, to strive for the very best biosecurity outcomes for our industry by improving sustainable funding and resourcing of Australia’s biosecurity effort.

Cattle Australia has recently participated in the public consultation for the National Biosecurity
Action Plan. In our submission we reaffirmed our long-standing support for:
• a broad and inclusive approach to the National Biosecurity Strategy.
• amendments which include language that describes stakeholders as “equal partners”
• language that describes a “real-time” approach to each of the six priority areas, specifically
data, investment, technology and culture
• the specific inclusion of improved cost recovery measures such as the container levy
• the provision of an interim review of the National Biosecurity Strategy

1
Level 2, 28 National Circuit, Forrest ACT 2603 ca@cattleaustralia.com.au|1300 653 038
PO Box 4225, Manuka ACT 2603 ACN:625 194 096 | ABN: 54 625 194 096
CA welcomes the opportunity to provide comment on the review of “the Intergovernmental
Agreement on Biosecurity (IGAB) - Is the Intergovernmental Agreement on Biosecurity effective and fit for the future”, noting that the IGAB document (2019) itself outlines:
• the objective of the IGAB is to “strengthen Australia's biosecurity system through enhanced
national collaboration among Australian governments”
• the IGAB “forms a major element of Australia's biosecurity architecture and establishes for
Australian governments (the Parties) their commitments to strengthen, participate in and
lead the national biosecurity system …”
• that “sustained and coordinated action is necessary to maintain Australia's favourable
national biosecurity status”

However, we wish to inform you that despite our long-standing support improved biosecurity, and our deep engagement on biosecurity matters, a number of challenges remain in the biosecurity space which, despite significant gains in public discourse, continue to persist. These issues include:
• The full implementation of the National Biosecurity Strategy at the earliest possible
convenience, supported by an ambitious Action Plan.
• Long Term Sustainable funding for Australia’s biosecurity system, including the immediate
imposition of the container levy, consistent with the previous IGAB (Craik) review.
• Complete and transparent visibility of Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
biosecurity expenditure, via the Sustainable Funding Advisory Panel.
• A comprehensive pre incursion biosecurity plan, including:
o Feral animal management
o Management plans for unmanaged cattle and buffalo
o Real time early warning surveillance systems, including real-time vector surveillance,
for threats such as Lumpy Skin Disease in cattle and buffalo.

CA believes many of the above issues persist as a result of the failure to implement previous recommendations, particularly those regarding sustainable funding and the container levy.

Finally, in developing this response CA wishes to point out that many of our biosecurity measures are “legacy systems” aimed at “legacy threats”. CA remains concerned by the lack of “emergent systems” aimed at “emergent threats”. Of the 18 priority animal disease threats, described by your department’s webpage, 11 of these are transmitted by air and some of these can be transmitted long-range by insect vectors rather than via conventional regulated incursion pathways. The lack of real-time surveillance for airborne pest and disease vectors is an obvious example of an emergent threat not adequately met by an emergent biosecurity measure.

Finally, CA would like to take this opportunity to suggest that the IGAB review take steps to invite stakeholders to speak to their submissions at an appropriate forum. This would allow the IGAB review to hear first-hand from CA regarding issues such as those we have outlined above.

Your Sincerely,

Dr Chris Parker
Chief Executive Officer
2
Level 2, 28 National Circuit, Forrest ACT 2603 ca@cattleaustralia.com.au|1300 653 038
PO Box 4225, Manuka ACT 2603 ACN:625 194 096 | ABN: 54 625 194 096