Labor has abandoned trade and tourism in its Budget, with higher taxes on top of cuts to funding programs.
Labor’s broken promises Budget fails industry across a range of areas, including;
• $40 million in tax for Labor’s terrible Australia European Union Free Trade Agreement.
• Delays with progressing a digital Incoming Passenger Card.
• No additional support for regional tourism operators amid a fuel crisis.
• $10 million phasing out of the Wine Tourism and Cellar Door grant package.
Nationals Leader Matt Canavan said despite the Australia-European Union Free Trade Agreement being a complete sellout to Australian farmers and Australian interests, taxpayers will fork out $38.6 million over four years from 2026–27, then $7.1 million per year to implement the Agreement.
“The EUFTA falls well short of what Australian farmers wanted and to make matters worse, taxpayers will now be forced to pay millions of dollars for it,” Senator Canavan said.
“The EU deal is in stark contrast with the deal that the former Coalition Government negotiated with the United Kingdom, which allowed unlimited exports of beef, lamb, cheese, sugar, and wheat. There is no meaningful agricultural market access gains in this deal. It removes a tariff that Australia had placed on European cheese and expands access to heavily subsidised European dairy imports.”
Shadow Minister for Tourism, David Littleproud, said that the Albanese Government’s 2026 Federal Budget had failed Australia’s crucially important tourism sector.
Labor’s fifth Budget has confirmed ongoing delays with progressing a digital Incoming Passenger Card (IPC) – a major reform which was first announced by the former Coalition Government in 2021.
Mr Littleproud said the ongoing lack of progress on a digital IPC was disappointing, and that this essential measure needed to be immediately prioritised.
“A digital IPC would effectively improve arrivals processing into Australia, harness the productivity of the aviation industry, strengthen border security, and boost our nation’s international tourism competitiveness,” Mr Littleproud said.
“This Budget was also marred by a woeful inability to urgently address the challenges facing regional, rural, and remote tourism operators – who have been severely impacted by public anxiety over fuel supplies, which have been stoked by Labor’s misguided $20 million taxpayer-funded National Fuel Security Campaign.”
According to industry data, demand in recent weeks had significantly reduced in regions situated more than two hours distance from capital cities – with bookings down by 80 per cent in some areas compared with March and April last year.
Mr Littleproud urged Labor to provide immediate support for tourism businesses across regional, rural, and remote Australia.
“Labor must decisively recalibrate the National Fuel Security Campaign’s public messaging campaign, they must urgently launch a dedicated domestic tourism campaign to restore public confidence, and they must establish a daily public fuel dashboard so that Australians can see supply levels in real time.”
Senator Canavan added Labor will also remove $10 million per year from the Wine Tourism and Cellar Door grant program.
“This program helped with cashflow and profitability, but Labor’s decision to end it will only increase the pressure wine growers are already facing,” Senator Canavan said.
“The Government has dismissed calls that the glut of wine sitting in vats could be turned into ethanol during a fuel crisis – Labor should heed the industry’s calls and review whether Australia’s excess wine stores could help alleviate our fuel supply crisis.”
