February 23, 2025 • 5 mins
A funding boost for the QEII National Trust is a win for farmers and the environment, Federated Farmers vice president says. The Government has announced an additional $4.5 million for the trust over the next three years after strong advocacy from Federated Farmers.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Colin Hurst is a South Canterbury arable farmer. He's also
the vice president of Federated Farmers and Colin, like me,
you were tough to hear over the weekend that the
Q two National Trust has got a funding increase another
four point five million for the Trust over the next
three years. It's a start, but they could do with
a lot more.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
What do you reckon, Yeah, it's a very good start, Jamie.
You know, the Trust does amazing work and essentially it's
farmers volunteering their land to the country really and we
just think we need to give it more money and
just help with all the volunteers volunteering that the farmers
(00:40):
are doing well.
Speaker 1 (00:41):
I think of all the money we spend on the environment,
and I would say money spent on the Q two
National Trust is the best money you can spend for
the environment. I'm not talking through a hole on the
backside here either, because I know quite a bit about it.
I've got a Q two National Covenant on my wetland
down in Southland, and I know the support I've had
from the Q two National Trust, and I know what
(01:02):
it does for that piece of land to effectively retire
it and keep its land use in perpetuity. It can
never mines of wetland, it can never be drained or
anything like that. It will stay as a wetland.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Yeah, definitely, Jamie. Look, it's it's locked and loaded forever. Really,
it's almost like a national park. In fact, we're saying
it is like a national park because it's locked and
loaded forever. Really. And you know, there's one hundred and
just under one hundred and ninety thousand hicues across the country.
Across of it mostly farms, and it's double the size
(01:37):
of some of the initial part.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
Two hundred covenants. Yeah, covering nearly one hundred and ninety
thousand hectares. The interesting thing is, I mean like four
point five million over three years. That's one point five
million paranum. It sounds good, but I don't think the
Q two National Trust had had an increase in pay
from the government for about a decade.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Yeah, that's right, Jamie. It hasn't gone up at all,
and we all know what inflation's done over that time.
And in fact, talking to the QWE two Trust, they
weren't going to be able to take any more protections
on on farmland, so at least it's about to keep
the lights on.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
Are you going to go cap in hand to the
Prime Reproduction Select Committee and ask for some more money?
You're a bit like what's his name, Oliver? Can have
some more please?
Speaker 2 (02:27):
You've got a little hand out, definitely, Jamie, Definitely where
we've got a thirty minute slot there. In fact, we
put our earlier press release out a couple of weeks
ago and we've got an email from the Prime Select
Committee asking us to come and explain in more detail
what increased funding for the Q two trust will mean.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
So talk to me about how some of this money
is spent on these covenants. It's not only protecting the
land obviously, which goes with the covenant, but it's fencing,
it's spread out of control, it's all sorts of things.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
Yes, well, of course the first battle of these areas
need to be special for us. So it's probably either
a wetland or the remnants of native bush and that
type of thing, and it's farmers have protected that to
get to the stage, and then they just need to
enhance the protection. This is gensing it off from their
livestock predative control. Because you know, I keep hearing all
(03:17):
the time that the amounts of deer and pigs and
wallabies all around the place. So you know it's protecting
pain for all that to get them out of these
special areas. Yeah, that type of thing.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Money well spent. Now you're a ye, matty cropping farmer,
arable farmer. I know you've had a challenging season. And
up the road a bit further where they do all
the seed cropping, the grass seed cropping and mid Canterbury,
they're having a bit of a bugger of a season
because they just can't get your traditional Canterbury summer weather,
the warm nor westers should I say, to dry out
(03:49):
these crops for harvest.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Yeah, it's a bit of a tough old road at
the moment for some of our cropping farmers or seed
grows especially. And I was just up and missing on
the weekend, and oh, by jolly talking to some of
the terrible farmers up there. They hadn't had many noisters,
which it was just a savior for a lot of
these drops. So you can get the good drying wind
and but then we seem to begin in the rain
every couple of days, and you know after rain you
(04:13):
need to about three days good weather before the crops
dry enough to get through the combine harvester. So very frustrating.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
No doubt the dairy farmers in there and the pastoral
farmers will be happy. How are arable farmers going at
the moment? Are you making a buck?
Speaker 2 (04:27):
Oh it's tough, Jamie. We've certainly with all the inflation
on farm inflation with fertilizer and chemicals and all all
that type of thing. But we've had a bit of
a burst of increased prices just sort of early in
the new year with demands, especially from Southland. A lot
of the lot of the late some of the early
crops have gone down there. In fact, we've delivered three
(04:49):
loads of big week down down into the wind area
only last week. So certainly having a good strong dairy
price of the money all goes around, say for the
other secret So that's really positive and I think we're
on the way up at East one crisis.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
I'm pleased to hear at Colin Hurst, vice president of
Federated Farmer's Biodiversity spokesperson, good luck when you front up
to the Primary Production Select Committee and ask for some
more money for the Q two National Trust.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Thanks Jammy,
Colin Hurst is a South Canterbury arable farmer. He's also
the vice president of Federated Farmers and Colin, like me,
you were tough to hear over the weekend that the
Q two National Trust has got a funding increase another
four point five million for the Trust over the next
three years. It's a start, but they could do with
a lot more.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
What do you reckon, Yeah, it's a very good start, Jamie.
You know, the Trust does amazing work and essentially it's
farmers volunteering their land to the country really and we
just think we need to give it more money and
just help with all the volunteers volunteering that the farmers
(00:40):
are doing well.
Speaker 1 (00:41):
I think of all the money we spend on the environment,
and I would say money spent on the Q two
National Trust is the best money you can spend for
the environment. I'm not talking through a hole on the
backside here either, because I know quite a bit about it.
I've got a Q two National Covenant on my wetland
down in Southland, and I know the support I've had
from the Q two National Trust, and I know what
(01:02):
it does for that piece of land to effectively retire
it and keep its land use in perpetuity. It can
never mines of wetland, it can never be drained or
anything like that. It will stay as a wetland.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Yeah, definitely, Jamie. Look, it's it's locked and loaded forever. Really,
it's almost like a national park. In fact, we're saying
it is like a national park because it's locked and
loaded forever. Really. And you know, there's one hundred and
just under one hundred and ninety thousand hicues across the country.
Across of it mostly farms, and it's double the size
(01:37):
of some of the initial part.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
Two hundred covenants. Yeah, covering nearly one hundred and ninety
thousand hectares. The interesting thing is, I mean like four
point five million over three years. That's one point five
million paranum. It sounds good, but I don't think the
Q two National Trust had had an increase in pay
from the government for about a decade.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Yeah, that's right, Jamie. It hasn't gone up at all,
and we all know what inflation's done over that time.
And in fact, talking to the QWE two Trust, they
weren't going to be able to take any more protections
on on farmland, so at least it's about to keep
the lights on.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
Are you going to go cap in hand to the
Prime Reproduction Select Committee and ask for some more money?
You're a bit like what's his name, Oliver? Can have
some more please?
Speaker 2 (02:27):
You've got a little hand out, definitely, Jamie, Definitely where
we've got a thirty minute slot there. In fact, we
put our earlier press release out a couple of weeks
ago and we've got an email from the Prime Select
Committee asking us to come and explain in more detail
what increased funding for the Q two trust will mean.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
So talk to me about how some of this money
is spent on these covenants. It's not only protecting the
land obviously, which goes with the covenant, but it's fencing,
it's spread out of control, it's all sorts of things.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
Yes, well, of course the first battle of these areas
need to be special for us. So it's probably either
a wetland or the remnants of native bush and that
type of thing, and it's farmers have protected that to
get to the stage, and then they just need to
enhance the protection. This is gensing it off from their
livestock predative control. Because you know, I keep hearing all
(03:17):
the time that the amounts of deer and pigs and
wallabies all around the place. So you know it's protecting
pain for all that to get them out of these
special areas. Yeah, that type of thing.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Money well spent. Now you're a ye, matty cropping farmer,
arable farmer. I know you've had a challenging season. And
up the road a bit further where they do all
the seed cropping, the grass seed cropping and mid Canterbury,
they're having a bit of a bugger of a season
because they just can't get your traditional Canterbury summer weather,
the warm nor westers should I say, to dry out
(03:49):
these crops for harvest.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Yeah, it's a bit of a tough old road at
the moment for some of our cropping farmers or seed
grows especially. And I was just up and missing on
the weekend, and oh, by jolly talking to some of
the terrible farmers up there. They hadn't had many noisters,
which it was just a savior for a lot of
these drops. So you can get the good drying wind
and but then we seem to begin in the rain
every couple of days, and you know after rain you
(04:13):
need to about three days good weather before the crops
dry enough to get through the combine harvester. So very frustrating.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
No doubt the dairy farmers in there and the pastoral
farmers will be happy. How are arable farmers going at
the moment? Are you making a buck?
Speaker 2 (04:27):
Oh it's tough, Jamie. We've certainly with all the inflation
on farm inflation with fertilizer and chemicals and all all
that type of thing. But we've had a bit of
a burst of increased prices just sort of early in
the new year with demands, especially from Southland. A lot
of the lot of the late some of the early
crops have gone down there. In fact, we've delivered three
(04:49):
loads of big week down down into the wind area
only last week. So certainly having a good strong dairy
price of the money all goes around, say for the
other secret So that's really positive and I think we're
on the way up at East one crisis.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
I'm pleased to hear at Colin Hurst, vice president of
Federated Farmer's Biodiversity spokesperson, good luck when you front up
to the Primary Production Select Committee and ask for some
more money for the Q two National Trust.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Thanks Jammy,
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