Cathy O'Toole (Herbert, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, the Australian Institute of Marine Sciences and James Cook University are all based in my electorate. Why is the Prime Minister now making these vital research bodies in my electorate apply to a small, private foundation made up of his big-business mates to try to get back any of the taxpayers' money he gave away? Why is the Prime Minister privatising the protection of our most precious and fragile environmental asset?

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Herbert has gone missing because her side of politics abandoned the reef. If you look at the money that they contributed to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority in the last year that they were in office, it's around half of what we are putting in. If you look at the money that the department of the environment was contributing to the reef when they were in office, it was about half of what we are contributing. When Labor were in office, they put the Barrier Reef on a path to UNESCO's endangered list. When Labor were in office, they had no long-term plan. When Labor were in office, they didn't provide the funding. When Labor were in office, they had five dredge disposal projects planned for the marine park.

In contrast, we have come in and put in place a long-term plan for the reef with the Queensland government. We've put in a $2 billion commitment with Queensland. We've made a half a billion dollar commitment through the foundation. We've been praised by UNESCO. And let me tell the House where the money is going to go through the foundation: $201 million is going to go to improving water quality, with changed farming practices, such as reduced pesticide, nitrogen and sediment run-off; $100 million is going to the best science to implement reef restoration, which is why Australia's Chief Scientist welcomed the announcement; $58 million is going to the fight against the coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish; $45 million is supporting work increasing community engagement, such as Indigenous traditional knowledge for sea country management; and $40 million is going towards reef health monitoring and reporting.

The foundation was supported when Labor was in office. They put money into it. The member for Watson put out a press release saying that the foundation would protect the unique values of the reef. When we announced our $500 million, the member for Sydney welcomed it. The member for Sydney welcomed our announcement. But the member for Herbert has got no money to show, because when Labor were last in office they abandoned the reef. Only the coalition can be trusted to protect regional jobs in Queensland. Only the coalition can be trusted to provide appropriate funding for reef preservation and conservation.