We're finally winning against fire ants. Don't let governments drop the ball now.

For the first time, Australia’s fire ant eradication program is beginning to move inward — after years of fighting the infestation from its outer edges.

That’s real progress. An independent review has confirmed that eradication by 2032 remains within reach.

But only if we finish the job.

The current national funding arrangements end in June 2027. Without a long-term commitment from every Australian government, we risk losing the momentum we’ve worked so hard — and spent so much — to build.

We know what happens when fire ants aren’t met with the resources they demand. A major independent review in 2021 found that the program needed a stronger strategy, substantially greater investment and better national coordination. Governments responded, and the program is now moving in the right direction.

We can’t let that progress slip away.

If fire ants are left uncontrolled, they could spread across 97 per cent of Australia and cost us up to $2 billion every year. They could harm our farms, homes and communities, cause painful and sometimes dangerous stings, and prey on native birds, mammals, reptiles and frogs.

Fire ants don’t respect borders. They can travel in soil, freight and landscaping materials, and spread through floodwaters. What began in Queensland could become a permanent problem for communities across Australia.

But that future isn’t inevitable. We still have the chance to stop them.

Governments wouldn’t build half a bridge or put out half a fire. Let’s not eradicate half the fire ants.

Please sign this petition calling on the Federal Treasurer, state premiers and territory chief ministers to secure uninterrupted, long-term national funding for the 2027–32 fire ant response plan—and give the program what it needs to finish eradication.

We’ve come too far to stop now. Together, we can protect the places, wildlife and way of life we love — and help make Australia fire-ant free for good.