Agricultural policy in Australia: deregulation,bipartisanship and agrarian sentiment

This paper provides an overview of the development of agricultural policy in Australia from a complex web of government intervention in the sector in the first half of the 20th century to the deregulation of the past 40 years. It highlights the close interrelationship between agricultural policy and manufacturing policy as well as the areas in which agricultural policy has been distinctive, namely the largely bipartisan nature of agricultural policy development and the strong cultural attachment across the community to farmers in general and family farming in particular. Recent policy debates suggest that agricultural policy will remain a sector apart in terms of the broadly bipartisan nature of policy and the ongoing influence of non-economic considerations. Australia will retain its comparative advantage in agricultural exports into the future and policymakers will need to continue to balance policies that support the economic performance of the sector with those that reflect community expectations of support for the farming community more broadly.     

Rural children's perceptions of life on the land in Southwestern Ontario

What are the life experiences of farm children in rural southwestern Ontario? Within the rural sociological literature, little research has been undertaken on the geographies of Canadian children in rural settings. Play, leisure, work and future aspirations are important to their lives. However, little is known about these issues and children's use of space and place on the farm. This study focuses on these issues from the point of view of the child and examines how gender, age and socialization processes work together with agrarianism to frame the lifeworlds of these children. In general, these children do not aspire to farm in the future, but are interested in future residence in the country. They value the way of life to be found in farming but some experience loneliness on the farm. For farm children, space and farm animals act as comfort in their lives and make for unique experiences.