It’s a fight for a fair go over farmer hit, writes Brett Hosking
IT’S been a really tough few weeks to be a Victorian farmer.
Between a massive new tax being imposed on our rates bills in the form of the Emergency Services Volunteer Fund, a rapidly worsening drought creeping across rural Victoria and a newly minted proposed Victorian Transmission Plan stamping plans for infrastructure development that we didn’t ask for nor were we really consulted on across large areas of our communities. It really has been a tough few weeks to be a Victorian farmer.
Two weeks ago, the Allan Labor Government passed legislation to introduce the ESVF levy, despite strong and sustained opposition from the farming community, the CFA, and regional Victorians.
As president of the Victorian Farmers Federation, I can tell you firsthand just how deeply disappointed and frustrated farmers are. 
This decision adds yet another burden on farming families who are already doing it tough. 
It comes at a time when large parts of our state are in drought, input costs are climbing, and the pressure on regional businesses and mental health is growing by the day.
Last Tuesday, I stood on the steps of Parliament House in Melbourne alongside more than 4000 fellow Victorians. 
Farmers, volunteers, families and rural community members who all took time away from their homes, their properties and their businesses to send a very clear message: enough is enough.
This was not just a protest about a levy. It was about fairness and being heard. 
For too long, decisions have been made in Spring Street that ignore the realities we face on the land.
The pain of this decision will not be felt in the halls of Parliament but out here in the bush. It will be felt by farmers already struggling to keep their businesses afloat. 
It will be felt by families making impossible decisions about feed, water and bills, and it will be felt by communities who feel increasingly overlooked by a government that talks about consultation but does not seem to listen.
So many farmers that I have spoken with feel like they are no longer seen by those in government. 
Like they are collateral in goverments plans to re-wire our nation and an annoyance when we question their budget priorities around tunnels, crossing removals and airport rail. 
These are all good things as long as government can afford to build them, ours cannot and now they’re asking us to pay.
If, like many you’re feeling the burden of all of this change then know that you’re not alone.
Your fellow farmers, your families and your communities are there alongside you so reach out when you need support. In doing so you might also be the very support that one of your neighbours is also looking for.
The VFF will not stop fighting for a fair go. 
We are calling for a funding model that genuinely reflects the challenges faced by rural and regional Victorians, and one that does not punish those who are already contributing so much through their work, their taxes and their service.
Tuesday’s rally was a powerful show of unity and strength from the bush. 
We are not going away, and we are not giving up.
It is time for the Government to come back to the table, not just to hear us, but to actually listen. And in the meanwhile, lets all look out for one another.
Brett Hosking is Victorian Farmers’ Federation president