Government and industry regulations are being used to impose onerous restrictions on rural activities.
The Victorian Government is the chief culprit, demanding farmers apply for permits for everything from clearing land and collecting firewood to ripping up rabbit warrens.

It is also forging ahead with plans to introduce child employment permits, new native vegetation laws and powerful animal welfare legislation.

Farmers also face increased demands from supermarkets, processors and overseas customers to document exactly how they farm.

New federal industrial relations laws are also proving an administrative nightmare for farmers forced to put their employees on complex awards and reporting systems.

Farmers say they are increasingly being forced out of the paddock into costly paper chases with state and local government bureaucrats.

State Government budget papers revealed an extra 2665 public servants had been employed over the past three years.

It seems the extra bureaucrats were trying to justify their existence.

More government expenditure on public servants means an awful lot more red tape and regulation for the rest of us.

The community's response to the Child Employment Bill is clear evidence people are becoming fed up with government controls and the need to get a permit to do almost anything