Agriculture Minister Julie Collins has cut short a press conference in which she ducked questions on whether a decision to ease restrictions on US beef was designed to appease US President Donald Trump.
Collins said fresh advice from her department justifying the change would not be made public, adding that “that is not what is done, usually”.
Asked repeatedly if the call was triggered by Trump’s claims earlier this year that Australia was blocking US beef, Collins alternated between saying the biosecurity change was based on a five- or 10-year review.
“This process now is at conclusion and has taken around five years,” she said.
“This decision has been purely based on the science and a rigorous assessment by my department.”
Collins did not directly answer questions on the nature of US assurances around new traceability measures for cattle born in Mexico or Canada that are then slaughtered in America.
Anthony Albanese has been accused of lifting the ban on US beef imports to appease Donald Trump.Credit: Dominic Lorrimer
This masthead reported last month that Australia saw an easing of restrictions on US beef imports as a move that could be presented as a win for Trump while Australia sought exemptions from US tariffs. The Australian Financial Review reported on Thursday that the department had finalised its advice, triggering renewed debate on the merits of importing US beef.
Asked directly if the change was designed for this purpose, Collins said: “As I said, this has been the culmination of what has been a 10-year process.”
Collins ended the press conference after six minutes in the face of a wall of questions from reporters. She said she was on duty in the House of Representatives.
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