It is a total disregard for the plight of ordinary working Australians and pensioners too, who are trying to manage on ever-shrinking and meagre budgets.

Her litany of so-called oversights is breathtaking in its scope and brazen audacity - it beggars belief that anyone could simply outlay $800,000 on a whim.

We all realise there is a need to curb spending to rein in debt occurred by both sides of politics.

However, it is staggering to think that any government official while spruiking fiscal restraint to the Australian taxpayer, can be caught out using taxpayer funds for her personal financial gain. 

In the past, l have noted that the Liberal-National Party have been super quick to highlight and prosecute any union rorting.

It seems that those same MPs baying for union blood are reticent to expose any misuse of public funds within their own ranks.

With that in mind l did a quick online search and found that our own federal member Andrew Broad had spent $207,000 between January 1 to June 30, 2015.

Now l’m not suggesting any impropriety here, but one wonders how our local parliamentary representatives are finding ways to curb their spending?

Ordinary working folk have to struggle with the constant cost of daily living rises and with petrol costs soaring to $1.50 a litre, is it any wonder that the Australian voter is totally fed up with the political ‘age of entitlement’ mentality.

If the average worker is expected to rein in costs and do more with less, then that attitude should be spread right across all job descriptions, including those of a political nature. 

What are our local representatives doing to curb their spending and thereby demonstrate that they are just like everyone else and committed to savings too?

TREVOR ‘Frank’ TAGLIABUE

Natimuk

VICTORIA’S peak farmer organisation is continuing to lead the call for the livestock industry to open up its operations to independent scrutiny and improve competition.

The Victorian Farmers Federation Livestock Group made the call in anticipation of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s report into the red meat sector, due to be released at the end of January.

An interim report, released by the competition watchdog last October, highlighted the need for transparency across the whole livestock supply chain.

We are expecting the final report to be vital in creating a fairer livestock industry, and we’re committed to working with the commission in ensuring its recommendations are followed across the supply chain.

We would still like to see important advantages such as pre-sale weighing at livestock saleyards and the introduction of mandatory price reporting, but we are optimistic that the approach taken by the commission will pave the way for a level playing field.

There also needs to be a compulsory requirement to report carcass dressing percentage for all ‘over the hook’ sales.

Industry has proposed introducing objective carcass measurement but there also needs to be a measure of dressing percentage to provide additional benefits to producers and the wider industry.

The variation in carcass trim across the industry is a real sore point. Transparency in this area would help alleviate that.

The meat industry committed in its latest strategic plan to ensuring by 2030 that 35 per cent of all Australian cattle and sheep supplied direct to works are paid on a quality and yield basis. The federation has suggested that any value producers would gain from objective carcass measurement could be limited unless this value based marketing target is fast tracked by processors.

We need mandatory carcass feedback and we need to be paid for what we produce.

This will improve the quality of the Australian beef herd and keep us on top in the international marketplace.

While the red meat supply chain was multifaceted and complex, the federation will continue to lobby for beef market sector reforms to ensure viability for future generations.

The federation pushed the commission to take action on the power of processors in the wake of Barnawartha saleyards being forced to abandon pre-sale weighing in late 2015.

The campaign led to the formation of the commission’s agriculture enforcement and engagement unit, which mounted the investigation, as well as a senate inquiry into the consolidation of the red meat processing sector. We encourage the commission to continue to monitor industry’s progress in implementing their recommendations.

MARK RITCHIE

VFF Livestock Councillor

THE Red Cross is advising people to keep a cool head through this week’s scorching heatwave temperatures. We’re reminding people to keep cool, hydrated and know how to recognise the signs of heat-stroke.

With temperatures forecast to be well into the 30s and up into the 40s throughout much of the rest of the country next week, Red Cross said heat-stroke symptoms could include an altered conscious state, like being confused or fainting, vomiting, appearing hot and red and more specifically a high body temperature with a lack of sweat.

Red Cross’ free First Aid App can be used to walk users through the signs, symptoms and responses for heat-stroke and many other first aid emergencies.

JANIE McCULLAGH

Red Cross