Former Central Wheatbelt MLA Mia Davies delivers impassioned speech to sheep industry at WASIA general meeting

Former opposition leader Mia Davies has urged Australia’s sheep and wool industries to utilise the momentum of the Keep the Sheep movement to safeguard their future. In her first industry appearance since losing the battle for Federal electorate Bullwinkle in May, Ms Davies made an impassioned speech at the WA Shearing Industry Association’s general meeting on June 21. The former Central Wheatbelt MP utilised the forty minute time slot to emphasise how important it was for the agriculture sector to build and maintain strong, lasting relationships with all members of parliament. Ms Davies said while it was easy to get bogged down in the unfairness of politics, now was not the time to give up. “I think we need to continue to work really hard on engaging with people,” she said. “Dismissing the political context we operate in, I think, only leads to further isolation and a disconnect for an industry which is absolutely at the mercy of public sentiment.” Ms Davies said industry had relied too heavily on the “goodwill and trust that generations have built”, failing to keep pace with urbanisation, media concentration and global trends. “Industry has carried on doing what you do exceptionally well, producing a beautiful product,” she said. “But the world and the people around us that influence the decision makers have changed significantly.” Ms Davies highlighted how crucial it was to “continually engage” with politicians and to “show up early” when there was an issue. “Politics is people based — we are people, we have connections, we want to be able to deliver something,” she said. “And they (politicians) were infinitely more productive when you weren’t turning up when the house was on fire.” Speaking to the theme of the meeting, The Value of the Merino, Ms Davies said farmers had a “future-proof product”. “It’s not a legacy breed — there’s a world out there drowning in synthetic fast fashion, fast food, and the Merino is, I think, waiting to be re-unveiled in a world looking for that transition,” she said. “But we can’t rely on the product to sell itself — we have to sell the system that supports it. “That includes the people, infrastructure, regulation, education and research that it relies on.” Ms Davies said determining how industry could help the both government of the day and the opposition was crucial. “There is no point standing on the sidelines throwing rocks and expecting them to pick up the baton on your behalf,” she said. Pointing to the State Government’s Made in WA plan, Ms Davies said it was a good place for the industry to start. “We can tick so many of their boxes and help them deliver that agenda, we just need to frame it up and give it to them in a way that they understand,” she said.