Foreign investment election talks welcome

The West Australian

WAFarmers welcomes the issue of foreign investment entering the Federal election dialogue.

As part of WAFarmers five policy priorities, WAFarmers is calling for a balanced foreign investment policy to be established following a full investigation into the current state of play through a foreign investment register.

WAFarmers President Dale Park said it was encouraging to see both parties commit to establishing such a register.

"Without knowing where we stand in terms of foreign investment, it is difficult to plan a path forward - that is why WAFarmers has been calling for a register for some time," Mr Park said. "When issues like this receive bipartisan support, it is often the case that they become less important once a party wins office, so we hope that whoever wins the September 7 election stands by their commitment."

Mr Park said there was a need for an injection of capital into the agriculture sector, which could be provided by foreign investors.

"The future government must recognise the importance of international flows of capital in any agriculture policy - the future competitiveness and profitability of the sector relies on it."

The call for a balanced foreign investment policy is the fourth policy priority of WAFarmers ahead of the election, following on from expanding live export, ensuring financial competitiveness and maintaining fuel affordability.

Get the latest news from thewest.com.au in your inbox.

Sign up for our emails