Agriculture
10 December, 2025
Rise up against ‘unjust laws’
CALLS for open revolution of farmers by Victorian farmers against what have been labelled the State Government’s “unjust” compulsory access acquisition laws have reverberated in Parliament this week.
Murray Plains MP Peter Walsh on Tuesday has turned to Labor’s heartland to back his call to arms – he says ACTU secretary Sally McManus has made it clear neither she nor the union movement sees a problem with workers “breaking laws where those laws are unjust”.
He says the laws Government has inflicted on farmers, of unbridled right of entry to their farms by VicGrid (government workers) and the massive fines to be imposed if they don’t allow entry are unjust.
“I don’t see a problem with farmers breaking those laws to protect their property rights,” Mr Walsh told Parliament .
“In fact I commend those farmers and their neighbours for actually standing up for each other against these draconian laws. Laws introduced because the Labor government had made such an abysmal job of ‘consulting’ these farmers about VNI-West.
“Compulsory acquisition of the land owned by these farmers is an unjust law and the Allan Labor government has treated these same farmers with a total disregard for their rights as Victorians.”
Mr Walsh’s campaign to stave off Labor’s “jackboot tactics” has been backed to the hilt by the Victorian Farmers Federation. The peak farming body now has more than 6000 signatures on its petition to protect farmland in Victoria from a government with “little or no regard for private property, country people or farmers”.
President Brett Hosking says farmers rightly feel they are just there to be used and taxed to fund Labor’s crippling debt from massive cost blowouts on Melbourne infrastructure projects.
“It is time these issues were heard in the city and all power to those taking a stand to protect farmland,” Mr Hosking says.
“The VFF calls on all Victorians to pledge their support to grow and protect the state’s prime farmland by signing a new petition as part of the new ‘Help protect Victorian farmland’ campaign. Victorian agriculture is a huge asset which needs protecting – it is an economic powerhouse underpinning more than 150,000 jobs and contributing more than $20 billion to the Victorian economy each year.
“Victoria is Australia’s food bowl; our farmland is a national treasure producing almost a quarter of the nation’s food from just 3 per cent of arable Australian land.
“Our farmers protect and conserve our state’s incredible biodiversity, as well as being industry leaders in the emissions reduction our planet needs so urgently.
“We’re not asking for development to stop but we are demanding it is planned with intelligence, respect and an eye to the future.”