21 March, 2017. 14:23
ERROL PARKER | Editor-at-large | Contact
The so-called voice of all regional Australians has left one local ant producer feeling under-represented and hurt this afternoon after he was snubbed full primary producer membership of the National Party of Australia.
With nearly 100cm³ of ant under management, Peter Dupont said he’s in the top 10% of ant farmers nationally and feels he deserves to be properly represented in Canberra by his local member.
“I applied to join the National Party after the LNP told me to go away,” said the 45-year-old semi-retired grazier.
“Then the Nats said ant farming was for children and not grown adults, so they basically threw me under the Kenworth as well. All I want is political representation and somebody to fight for the rights of ant farmers around the country.”
In recent years, the price of ants has gone through the roof.
Spurred on by a lack of both federal and state assistance, an unregulated and often unmonitored ant market has grown to turn over close to $700 in the past two years alone.
However, the former yabbie poacher has taken the initiative to found his own party – one to represent the downtrodden primary producers of Australia.
“I went to Parliament House in Canberra to get it started and one of the AFP guys there said if I came any closer, he’d put two through my chest and one on the chin,” he said.
“So he said to put my application in the fountain out the front and it’ll get to the right people.”
More to come.
