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The Minister of Primary Industries, Katrina Hodgkinson, has been compelled by peak NSW Farmers' group to act on the drought in the state's north west, and to act quickly.
The NSW Farmers' Association (NSWFA) said while it was pleased the Minister had finally realised farmers were in a crisis situation emotionally and financially, time was of the essence.
NSWFA president, Fiona Simson said the Minister should not delay the process by consulting with the Queensland and Federal Governments because this was a state decision.
"Now is the time to stop talking. The (Regional Assistance Advisory) Committee (RAAC) chair has seen the north west, he has reported back to the Minister on how bad things are. Right now our farmers don't want another visit, they want action," she said.
"The farmers in the north west have been dealing with this for 18 months and we have been raising since the very first meeting of the RAAC in February 2013. We have been sitting around the table at this committee reporting to the minister on seasonal conditions and telling her about this increasingly precarious situation for our farmers and rural communities in the North West."
Ms Simson recommends the NSW Government reinstates pre-February drought support measures until new measures are put in place at the state and federal level.
"But at the moment there is nothing for our farmers to fall back on, many of who have been preparing and managing extremely dry conditions for 18 months," she said, "How many letters, reports, surveys and maps does it take before a Minister recognises that farmers in the North West are in crisis?"
NSWFA has written to Ms Hodgkinson urgently asking for subsidies for transport to and from agistment, for feed and water and to sale from June 2013 and for low interest loans similar and current loans available for natural disasters.