Ag job cuts confirmed
AT LEAST 200 jobs will be cut from the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries with Minister John McVeigh confirming that the regions will not be immune.
Mr McVeigh announced the slashing of the public service roles just days after Deputy Opposition Leader Tim Mulherin circulated a letter sent to the department warning of a six-month restructure that would result in job losses.
Mr Mulherin has previously accused Mr McVeigh of planning to shelve more than 500 jobs as the government cuts further into its public service.
In a statement, Mr McVeigh said the 200 found so far were from administration and communications.
"Between now and the budget I will be working through further savings that need to be made and there will be job cuts in regional areas, but they will not be vital frontline services jobs," he said.
This new department - now pulled from the former DEEDI mega-department - will be tightly managed with tougher accountability.
"The department is being restructured, and sadly some staff will have to go," he said.
Mr McVeigh said he and senior department managers met yesterday with key agriculture stakeholders groups including AgForce, QFF, Canegrowers and Growcom.
