THE Victorian Farmers Federation says a Victorian Government tax reportedly proposed for truck movements at the Port of Melbourne would be a “blatant cash-grab”.
President Emma Germano said the “misguided” approach risked costing farmers millions, and Victoria its mantle as Australia’s largest food and fibre exporter by value.
“If this government was serious about lowering truck emissions, they would have invested wisely in efficient rail access to the Port of Melbourne years ago,” she said.
“The fact is now the Port of Melbourne is Australia’s busiest container port, and most of that comes and goes by trucks.
“This truck tax is a blanket tax-grab.”
According to The Weekly Times, under the proposal trucks would be slugged with a tiered tax of $150 to $250 per container, based on each vehicle’s age and carbon emissions, which would be used to subsidise rail freight and support decarbonisation.
Funds would reportedly go to “a new rebate scheme for full import and export containers, and moving empty containers, on rail”.
The tax would initially be used to fund the Port Rail Shuttle Network project.
Ms Germano said there was no justification for a tax on agricultural exports, “especially when the funds will be eventually transferred to consolidated revenue”.
She also questioned the constitutional power of the Victorian Government to levy the new tax.
“Under the Constitution, only the Commonwealth can levy customs and excise charges,” she said.
“There is a strong argument that the proposed tax could be classified as either of these forms of tax.
“We have seen the High Court slap down the Victorian Government before when it attempted to bring in a charge on electric vehicles.”
Ms Germano urged the government to develop an agricultural freight strategy to help get produce moving more efficiently.
“We need a plan and an incentive to move freight onto rail and this can be achieved through greater investment in rail corridors, tracks capable of double-stacking, rail loops and shuttle trains to lower unit transport costs,” she said.
“Lowering emissions can also be achieved by providing incentives to shift to high-productivity freight vehicles by upgrading our roads and bridges to allow for their movement.”
The Victorian Government said that the Port Rail Shuttle Network project would be “an opportunity to make a real difference to the way freight moves around Melbourne, reducing truck numbers in the inner city, removing congestion around the port and giving industry a more cost-effective way to get their products to market”.
A spokesperson for the Victorian Government said the Department of Transport and Planning was examining further options to boost the rail freight network in an attempt to get more trucks off the roads.
“We’ve invested over a quarter of a billion dollars to support rail freight, so operators can run heavier and faster trains more often, while reducing emissions and congestion around the port,” the spokesperson said.
“We will continue to work closely with industry to determine which policy settings are most appropriate.”
The government said that while a number of policy and operational matters were being considered, no decisions had been made.
Mildura Council and Member for Mildura Jade Benham last month called on the Victorian Government to reconsider any increased costs for road freight.
