Eric Hutchinson (Lyons, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Newcastle for bringing forward this motion on coastal shipping. To put this whole debate in context: the current system is simply not working. Yes, one option is to tinker around the edges. That may make it a little bit better, but the reality is it will not let the industry fix the structural issues and problems that are part of coastal shipping in Australia today.

We have an ageing fleet that is simply not being replenished. In 2013, 49 per cent of the ships in the world fleet were under 15 years of age and 79 per cent of the world's gross tonnage was carried on ships under 15 years of age. In contrast, the average age of Australian ships in the major trading fleet, and operating under a general licence, is 23 years. As these ships get older, they get less efficient; they break down more and the cost to insure them goes up. This is why we have seen operators in Australia progressively retiring their vessels over the years and not replacing them.

I am really disappointed, though, because there is no member for Franklin and no member for Denison here to defend the indefensible. Perhaps it is understandable. Unlike the last time I brought a motion here about the disastrous coastal shipping regulations that were brought in by the previous government, there is no sign of them here today. They are getting other people to do their bidding. To defend the indefensible in the case of Tasmania is simply unsustainable.

In 2012, the changes that were made absolutely hurt our state of Tasmania. As the member for Bass highlighted, the manufacturing industry in Tasmania was devastated as a result of that. The costs went up and they hurt our state. We lost our international shipping service—the AAA service that used to run Bell Bay-Brisbane-Singapore. Those changes hurt our state. All of that was then pushed onto Bass Strait. Thank heavens this government has listened: we have brought in $202.9 million over the next four years to expand the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme.

But we should not lose sight of the fact that we need to continue to work to drive down the costs of shipping on Bass Strait. This is not an endgame for us—this is our state's lifeline. I understand the MUA—

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