TASMANIA'S freight problems have to be solved for the state to have a future, Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association chief executive Jan Davis said.
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Ms Davis said she drew little comfort from last week's announcement by the state government that it would sign a memorandum of understanding with a Singaporean shipping company to reinstate a direct shipping link to Asia.
"The announced 'direct shipping link to Asia' will be to one, and possibly two, ports in Asia, once a fortnight, but more likely once a month and the cost to taxpayers will be about $11 million a year for three years," Ms Davis said.
"Some people think this will be a silver bullet, solving all our freight problems.
"However, most people who have studied the subject think that rather than this shipping link, the logical solution to Tasmania's international freight problem would be an extension of the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme to cover exports.
"The scheme covers cargo moved across Bass Strait for domestic consumption — that is, by people living in other Australian states and territories.
"It is supposed to recognise the extra costs that Tasmanian producers face in having to ship across Bass Strait rather than along a similar distance of the Hume or Pacific highways.
"Having recognised those differences, the scheme is meant to equalise the costs by way of a freight subsidy.
"What it does not do is to recognise at the same time that we face exactly the same cost disadvantage when we want to send goods to the Port of Melbourne for export.
We are still paying more, much more, than producers who have the comparative luxury of cheap rail and road transport from their point of production to the export port and the Productivity Commission agrees.
"Six key industry associations agree that the scheme should include goods destined for export. . . but the state government stands by its decision to invest $33 million taxpayer dollars in this shipping subsidy - as is its right."
Ms Davis said the annual cost of extending the scheme to include goods destined for export had been estimated at $25 million.
In the overall scheme of infrastructure funding for roads and rail on the mainland, that was "but a drop in the bucket", she said.