Hartsuyker was the keynote speaker at the Australian Livestock and Rural Transport Association and Livestock and Rural Transporters Association of Queensland Conference in Toowoomba over the weekend, and he said government investment had bolstered in the industry.

“Coming off the back of the suspension of live exports to Indonesia, 2013 was a tough and very lean year for the live export industry—with the total value of exports sitting at just over $930 million,” Hartsuyker said.

“Fast-forward to 2015-16, and that number has more than doubled to nearly $2 billion. You can’t argue with stats like that.

“The Australian Government is committed to supporting exporters of live animals by providing the roads and infrastructure required to transport live animals for export from point A to point B and beyond.

“The Australian Government is investing $50 billion in current and future infrastructure requirements, which includes $42 billion for the Infrastructure Investment Programme to build the road and rail infrastructure for the 21st century.”

A new industry award was also announced at the conference to pay tribute to rural operators who create a safer and more innovative heavy vehicle industry.

National Heavy Vehicle Regulator CEO Sal Petroccitto said the NHVR and ALRTA had joined forces to support the $5000 industry award, which focuses on safety and innovation within the heavy vehicle industry.

“I want to recognise those operators who take a proactive approach to safety across the road transport sector,” Petroccitto said.

“This award will highlight the shared interest of government and industry in improving safety and compliance generally.

“Safety is paramount to the NHVR and we want to encourage all operators to be proactive and responsible in doing everything they can to have the highest safety procedures in place.”

Applications will open next month and close on June 30, 2017. The winner will be announced at the LRTAV Conference on August 5-6, 2017.