A Tasmanian MP says farmers have been pushed to breaking point by heavy-handed enforcement, as he launches a parliamentary petition calling for an urgent review of the state’s land-clearing laws.
Shooters, Fishers and Farmers MP Carlo Di Falco said he agreed to sponsor the e-petition because regional communities had lost confidence in the system.
The petition was started by farmer and small business owner Lindsay White, the father of federal Labor Lyons MP Rebecca White.
It follows a recent court case that resulted in a fine of more than $100,000 over unauthorised land clearing.
The penalty has sparked wider concern across the agricultural sector about fairness and certainty.
Di Falco said farmers were telling him they felt disconnected from decisions affecting their livelihoods.
“The people who produce our food, employ locals and keep regional communities alive should not be living in fear that a decision made in good faith could leave them facing massive fines and years of stress,” he said.
“Farmers are telling me loud and clear that the system has lost balance.”
“They respect the environment because their livelihoods depend on it, but they are tired of being lectured by people who have never had to make a living off the land.”
Di Falco said the petition was not about removing environmental protections.
“It is about making sure enforcement is fair, proportionate and grounded in the realities of farming,” he said.
White said frustration in the agricultural community had reached breaking point.
“Tasmanian farmers are sick of being treated like criminals for working their own land,” he said.
“We cannot keep piling on rules, compliance and punishment while expecting family farms to survive.”
“Farmers are not asking for special treatment. We are asking for fairness, certainty and recognition that productive agriculture and environmental stewardship can go hand in hand.”
The petition has also picked up backing from One Nation’s Lee Hanson, who urged Tasmanians to sign it on social media.
Hanson said “excessive” penalties and “aggressive” enforcement were “destroying confidence across regional communities”.
She said it is “making farmers feel like they are under attack simply for trying to maintain productive farmland”.
“This is where politicians can and should work together for the common good and interest of our state,” she said.
