Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Whish-Wilson for his question. It is unfortunate that he has not done his homework on this. It was in fact Senator Ian Macdonald who back in 2005 issued the direction, as I recall, to AFMA. If I go through the history—which Senator Whish-Wilson obviously does not want to do—it will show that before the agriculture minister at the time, Senator Ian Macdonald, issued a direction to AFMA, the MV Veronica was a particular type of vessel that was seeking to fish within our waters.

Rather than go through the long history, I will just say that the rules were changed after that by Senator Macdonald with the direction to AFMA—and it was a very sound direction. It moved the situation to a circumstance where we would concentrate on output controls versus what would commonly be described as input controls. Output controls meant that we would look at issues around the total allowable catch rather than at the type of gear or effort that went into fishing. Input controls, such as restrictions on vessel gear or gear size, are designed to limit catches by deliberately impeding the efficiency of fishing. This drives up costs and can lead to problems such as effort creep, where fishers are forced to invest in inefficient capacity to overcome restrictions, poor economic condition and overcapacity.

This government, like those before it, takes the position that output controls, particularly individual transferable quotas, are the preferred approach to fisheries management. (Time expired)