The Crisafulli Government is delivering stronger biosecurity for Burdekin's beef sector with improvements to Queensland’s cattle tick management, including dedicated biosecurity staff and increased subsidies for treatment to be rolled out across the state.

Following a cattle tick outbreak in Taroom earlier this year, an independent review of Queensland's cattle tick management was undertaken to identify opportunities to strengthen tick management and rebuild industry confidence.

The review found the current framework is operationally effective and highlighted ways to strengthen surveillance, compliance, communications, and governance.

The Government has accepted the review’s recommendations and is delivering practical improvements across the state, including:

·         Three new dedicated Biosecurity Inspector to be based in priority cattle tick risk areas.

·         The 10% subsidy producers in the cattle tick free zone can access for approved pour-on and injectable products will be increased to 25%.

·         Allowing access to vital information on the restricted places register to provide increased transparency and assisting producers to manage local risk while protecting the privacy of individuals.

·         Changes to the Accredited Certifier model to improve effectiveness, consistency, and integrity including appropriate management of potential conflicts of interest.

·         Stronger compliance with a focus on high-risk movements and increased surveillance as well as utilising the full suite of enforcement tools available.

·         Continued investment in research and innovation to improve cattle tick control, including faster diagnostic testing for chemical resistance, next-generation diagnostic tools and future vaccine research.

The three new Biosecurity Inspectors dedicated to combating cattle tick will be based in Kingaroy, Dalby and Central Queensland.

These changes are just one of the ways the Crisafulli Government is supporting industry to reach our ambitious goal of increasing the value of primary production to $30 billion by 2030.

During Labor’s decade of decline, we saw biosecurity safeguards across the state crumble. At one point on Labor’s watch, more than 20% of the biosecurity workforce had left their post.

Minister for Primary Industries Tony Perrett said the Crisafulli Government understands what graziers need to get on with the job of producing world class beef.

“What became clear from the Taroom outbreak is that erosion integrity in the cattle tick management system and a breakdown in trust that took root and flourished under the former Labor government’s decade of decline,” Minister Perrett said.

"The integrity of the tick line must be maintained which is why I have moved to strengthen it with more boots on the ground, greater transparency, more surveillance, faster investigation and response times, greater support for producers and a stronger compliance approach to protect Queensland's cattle industry.”

Member for Burdekin, Dale Last MP, said the Crisafulli Government had listened to rural producers who manage cattle tick on both sides of the tick line.

"We've taken on board the concerns of graziers and responded with immediate, medium, and long–term adjustments to the role DPI plays, the support producers can access, research and development and the accredited certifier model.

"The overwhelming majority of Burdekin producers do the right thing every day. We'll continue backing them, but where people are failing to meet their obligations, Biosecurity Queensland will exercise its enforcement powers,” Mr Last said.

For further information on cattle tick zones and movement requirements, visit Cattle tick zones and movement requirements | Business Queensland.