The ACT party’s Don Nicolson has called the proposed National Animal Identification and Tracing  scheme a ‘lemon’ and ‘the ultimate bureaucrats dream’.

The former Federated Farmers president and ACT party list candidate number four, said in a statement yesterday that the ACT Caucus had agreed to oppose the remaining readings of the NAIT Bill in parliament.

Electronic tagging of the country’s cattle is due to start from July 1 next year, with sheep and deer herds following on later.

Mr Nicolson says the bill won’t improve what the industry already has and the existing national animal tracing system, which is paper and tag-based, is sufficient.

He says if the legislation is passed the ACT party will push for a farmers referendum on who will pay, and to delay the start of NAIT until 2017, to coincide with the arrival of the new and improved rural broadband.