ALC Government Relations Focus & Review | 20 Feb – 6 Mar 2026

The Australian Logistics Council met this week with Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government the Hon Catherine King MP and advisers from the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts to discuss issues affecting Australia’s freight and logistics system.

Key points included: 

• Supply chain productivity – the importance of integrated freight planning across road, rail, ports, airports and intermodal precincts, and protecting industrial land that supportslogisticsactivity. 
• Road User Charges – the need fortimelyrelease of the framework so operators and investors have certainty. 
• Freight rail – elements of the Safeguard Mechanism and current regulatory settings risk limiting rail’s competitivenessrelativeto road and should be reviewed. 
• Workforce shortages – ongoing shortages of drivers, technicians and logistics staff are constraining freight capacity. 

ALC also invited the Minister to participate in a member roundtable on Road User Charges and to open the ALC Awards Dinner. 

The Australian Logistics Council attended the ACCC Performance Consultative Committee this week and highlighted several pressures facing the freight and logistics sector. 

• Geopolitical tensions and fuel volatility are increasing global supply chain costs, which flow directly through to freight and the cost of moving goods across Australia.
• The road freight sector is under significant strain. Insolvencies among small and medium freight transport companies have risen 157 percent over the past three years, alongside more than 28,000 truck driver vacancies. With the average driver now in their 50s, workforce shortages are becoming structural.
• Trucks are increasingly sitting idle while SME operators continue to carry fixed costs, with flow-on impacts for freight capacity and cost of living across metro,regionaland remote Australia. 
• Current regulatory settings are also working against the sector’s ability to respond. Complex driver licensing and overlapping regulations, along with elements of the Safeguard Mechanism, can unintentionally limit the shift ofappropriate freightonto rail, despite the opportunity to reduce both costs and emissions. 

The Australian Logistics Council met with representatives from the National Farmers’ Federation to discuss the strong link between Australia’s agricultural sector and the national freight and logistics system. 

Key points included: 

• Food security – Both organisations noted that food securityultimately relieson fuel, people and the infrastructure that moves goods. While food is produced on farms, the system depends on reliable movement of inputs such as fuel and fertiliser and efficient freight connections to domestic markets and export gateways. 
• Export competitiveness – With most Australian agricultural production exported, the performance of the freight network is closely tied to the sector’s international competitiveness.
• Workforce pressures – Labour shortages across agriculture andlogisticsare emerging as a shared constraint, particularly in regional areas. 
• Land use pressures – Competition for land between food production, energy development,housingand industrial uses is increasing pressure across parts of the supply chain. 
• Freight access – Local government truck curfews were raised as an example of policies that can create unintended supply chain impacts if freight movements are restricted without considering system effects.

Both organisations noted the strong alignment between agriculture and logistics and the importance of continued collaboration on issues affecting Australia’s food system and supply chain resilience.