Fed: Labor reveals rural vet paper, greater role for Biosecurity

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Fed: Labor reveals rural vet paper, greater role for Biosecurity

CANBERRA, Aug 27 AAP - Australia's quarantine watchdog would be beefed up to help addressthe nation's shortage of rural veterinary surgeons under a Labor proposal released today.

Links between Biosecurity Australia and universities would be upgraded while also allowingfor more assistance to private vets.

Labor would also look to boost the number of vets employed in national parks to ensurediseases did not spread between native animals and commercial livestock.

Opposition primary industries spokesman Kerry O'Brien said the government had alloweda crisis in rural vet numbers to develop since coming to power.

He said government cuts to the tertiary education sector, reductions by the CSIRO inveterinary research and the wind-up of most state government vet labs had all contributedto a situation where rural areas will face a shortage of vets within the next decade.

Rural vet numbers had to be increased, especially with the threat of problems suchas foot and mouth disease growing in other countries.

"Post-border protection is a key focus of Labor's thinking on rural veterinarians,"

he said in a statement.

"A strong post-border protection regime can help to ensure that investment in borderprotection is not wasted."

Senator O'Brien said while Biosecurity's role in border protection had increased sincethe outbreak of foot and mouth in the United Kingdom, nothing had been done to boost localveterinary skills.

Closer links between Biosecurity and university veterinary schools would help boostthose skills to handle a possible foot and mouth outbreak.

Labor has also proposed a review of entry requirements into university vet coursesto broaden the selection criteria for students.

Senator O'Brien said more regional university places, with support for vet schoolsin regional institutions, should also be created.

He said the livestock industry had to recognise the importance of vets to their long-termsurvival.

"The veterinary profession also has a growing role to play in delivering enhanced productivityto the industry, to make this already efficient industry even more competitive on theworld stage," he said.

The government is carrying out an inquiry into rural vet numbers and ways to increase them.

AAP sw/daw/jmd/de

KEYWORD: VETS