A recent survey has shown that three-quarters of Australians believe more restrictions should be placed on foreign ownership of agricultural land, according to a report by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

The ABC's Vote Compass surveyed 875,000 people from rural and metropolitan areas, gauging their opinions on a range of social, environmental and economic issues.

The question of whether the government should introduce further restrictions on foreign ownership of agricultural land received the "most marked" response.

ABC election analyst Antony Green said this was more an emotional response than a rational one.

"It's one of those issues where I think people instinctively have an attitude that there shouldn't be foreign ownership of farm land," he was quoted as saying.

"On this, foreign ownership is probably a good thing on getting investment into properties, because if people want to sell their farm, they want to get the best price for it.

"So I think this is an area where rational policy decisions are actually quite distinct from the gut feeling of most voters."

Photo: Hansafax

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