Peter Spencer

Who is Peter Spencer?

Peter Spencer is an Australian farmer who came to national prominence after going on hunger strike in November 2009. He had been prevented from clearing "native vegetation" from his sheep farm in New South Wales and he said that this had caused severe financial difficulty.

Spencer's use of his land was restricted due to Australia's commitments to the Kyoto Protocol. He was refused compensation for his land being declared a carbon sink as it was the New South Wales government, and not the federal government in Canberra, which had enacted the laws in question, which were intended to combat global warming.

However, Spencer's family later stated:

"Native vegetation laws enacted over 10 years ago by State Governments are not the sole reason for the collapse of Peter's farm, and really have had a very small part to play. For MANY reasons the farm has not been profitable for a long time. Peter spent several years in Papua New Guinea on various business ventures, including an advisory role to the PNG government of the time. During this time he was unable to look after the farm adequately, an issue that was clearly a product of his then circumstance." http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/message-from-peter-spencers-family/story-e6frg6nf-1225817464020