New England MP and Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce revealed last Thursday the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) would shift from Canberra to Armidale if the Coalition was re-elected on July 2, bringing almost 200 jobs to the city and boosting the reputation of the University of New England, where it would be re-established.

But Greens candidate for New England, Mercurius Goldstein, said it “smacks of pork barrelling three weeks before an election” and the relocation of jobs to Armidale was “an attempt to save his own”.

He said the government should have waited for the results of a costbenefit analysis on the move of the nation’s chemical watchdog and questioned the “transparency” of the decision.

Animal Medicines Australia also expressed its concern about the “risks” associated with the relocation, highlighting the potential loss of expert staff that could not easily be replaced.

“No one can deny that new regional jobs are a good thing. The issue is whether there will be the appropriate people available to ensure the APVMA can continue its vital function,” AMA chief executive officer Duncan Bremner said.

“And unfortunately, based on the evidence provided to Senate Estimates hearings last year by the APVMA CEO that only seven of the APVMA’s 85 regulatory scientists were prepared to relocate, this highlights that our concerns are very real.”

It comes after the National Farmers Federation questioned whether it was “in the best interests of agriculture” and said the results of the review into the move should have been released before any decision was made.

“The NFF has always been concerned moving the APVMA would result in a loss of highly specific and skilled regulatory scientists and damage organisational continuity, which would delay the already 

difficult registration process for new pesticides and medicines,” Mr Finlay said.