Concern over future of rural counsellors

Labor fears the Abbott government may cut vital financial counselling services for struggling farmers.

Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce on Monday announced a review of the Rural Financial Counselling Service, which provides free financial counselling to farmers in difficulty.

Mr Joyce said it was a "business-as-usual review as part of routine governance processes", with a report due by the end of September.

The government provides grants to 14 not-for-profit organisations to employ around 120 financial counsellors.

But no grant rounds are currently open.

Labor agriculture spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon said the review would send a "collective shudder" through rural Australia.

Mr Fitzgibbon, agriculture minister in the previous Labor government, last year announced 17 extra full-time counsellors.

"This is the worst possible time to be placing doubt over the service and it follows the government's failure to deliver on a key aspect of its drought relief package," Mr Fitzgibbon said.

"It is cruel and insensitive."

He said the review was not discussed during the 2013 election campaign and would be another blow to state governments, which helped deliver the services.

The national commission of audit recommended the RFCS, which has been in place since 1986, be abolished and counselling services instead be run by the private sector without subsidies.