CENSUS data reveals the average age of farmers is 56, which means our industry is getting younger. Yet we still have a problem with young people getting a foot in the door. Now a liveable area with stock and plant can cost $2 million, making it bloody hard. Young people should not be daunted, as 38 years ago I recall the impossibility of getting into the industry myself without family support, but with learning to pick myself up after each fall, we eventually made it.
Although I did not think so at the time, on reflection my generation has had a relatively easier time than our parents, who suffered both the 1928 depression and World War II, which meant most people of the generation are very resilient.
My mother’s words still ring in my ears "you just have to pick yourself up and get on with it". Three generations of my family have gone to war to protect our democracy and it is alarming to see many surveys showing people are rapidly losing trust in the the body politic. Snake oil salesman like Donald Trump and Pauline Hanson, pedalling simplistic nonsense that will not solve people’s worries, help no one. The erosion of egalitarian Australia and the decreased capacity for social migration creates increased disquiet.
Malcolm Turnbull urgently needs to capture the nation’s attention.
Honest politicians there for the right reason are getting tarred with the stench of the Machiavellian manipulators. Restoring confidence is not easy and won’t be achieved with hollow rhetoric, but with tangible, meaningful actions. Firstly a national independent body similar to the Independent Commission Against Corruption must be established so people can see if improper actions occur someone is there to catch them. Every state in Australia established such a body and has caught a road train of filth helping restore people’s faith. Tony Fitzgerald, the person who conducted the Royal Commission into Queensland’s corruption, and a group of eminent Australians, has written a code of ethics all politicians should sign. Most agree with the notion, but disappointingly few have signed – which begs the question why not?
Political parties must only preselect people who have experienced real life work, meaning no union organisers or political operatives. We must remove from our parliament the people who think manipulation and conniving to stay in power is more important than representing people. In trying to restore egalitarian Australia, Mr Turnbull should task his government with developing policies that will slowly move us back in the direction of egalitarianism and stop the concentration of wealth in too few hands. Prime Minister Turnbull desperately needs a catalyst to gain Australians’ trust. He has nothing to lose. The alternative is a continued erosion of his leadership until he is replaced. That would increase minor parties’ influence, who appear only capable of promising popular rubbish that will further erode the nation’s confidence in democracy.