Ralph Kenyon, executive director of the Wimmera Development Association (WDA), based in Horsham in Victoria, said he saw a strong case for the relocation of some of the GRDC’s functions to Horsham, a city with major links to the grains industry.

“In making a submission to the Senate Inquiry we have pointed out the strong connection we have here with the GRDC,” Mr Kenyon said.

“There are good synergies there, we have the office space, the research capability and a strong grains industry in the region.”

Mr Kenyon pointed to commercial grains research and development being conducted in the region, including Bayer’s breeding centre at Longerenong and Nuseed’s innovation centre at Horsham, along with the sprawling Grains Innovation Park, housing the Australian Grains Gene Bank as examples of how large scale R&D work in grains could work in the Wimmera.

“There is already that critical mass of skilled people within the grains R&D space here in Horsham and we have thrown our hat in the ring for consideration if there was to be a restructure of GRDC.”

However, the WDA proposal met with lukewarm enthusiasm from farmer lobby groups.

John Eastburn, Grain Growers chairman, said the GRDC had recently undergone a restructure, including the opening of regional offices in Perth, Adelaide, Dubbo and Toowoomba.

“To me, this would be another restructure, and one that we don’t really need.

“The head offices are in Canberra, as they should be, and there are regional offices across the country – you can’t have a million new offices around the country.”

“Canberra is the headquarters of Australia, if you have businesses that have to work with government or departments, it just makes sense to have a presence there and we have already seen other parts of the GRDC moved out.”

He said he did not mind part of the regionalisation process being that offices were relocated to capital cities, rather than regional centres.

“In South Australia and Western Australia the capital cities are very much the home of most of the agri-business,” he said.

“I think the new model of the GRDC shares things around well, just because there are not offices in particular locations does not mean there is not R&D going on specific to that region.”

Mr Kenyon acknowledged the Wimmera push may fall on deaf ears in Canberra but argued it had merit.

“We certainly feel there is a good argument to locating at least some operational functions in the region.”

He hosed down concerns with transport to the area.

“There has been a feasibility study into a commercial airline service here and it can be done if we get the support.”

In spite of the Senate Inquiry into decentralisation no Federal Government agency has moved to a regional centre in a state other than NSW or Queensland, although there is speculation either Shepparton or Mildura could host a relocated Murray Darling Basin Authority.