Guy Barnett (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is for the Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation, Senator Abetz. Will the Minister advise the Senate of the Howard government’s response to demands made through the media yesterday by the Lennon Labor government to use taxpayers’ dollars to buy out timber workers’ jobs through the purchase of private property at Recherche Bay?

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Barnett for that excellent question and for his longstanding support of a balanced approach to conservation and jobs in our home state of Tasmania. The manoeuvring for a Labor-Green accord appears to be in full swing in Tasmania. Recherche Bay was independently assessed by the Australian Heritage Council, who determined that the proposed selective logging of the mostly regrowth forest will not damage the national heritage values of the place. Indeed, on ABC radio in Tasmania this morning, a man who was brought up near Recherche Bay accurately described the scene. Over the history of Recherche Bay there have been nine individual sawmills. He described how the Greens portray this site:

I went on a walk with the Greens and listened to Bob Brown talk to the group. All he mentioned was the French landing and walking to the lagoon. He did not mention that it had been logged before nor, for that matter, had he mentioned that the area had been mined as well.

The Labor Premier’s decision to make an extraordinary arrangement to put taxpayers’ money on the table for this land is a disgrace. It is nothing more than appeasing the Greens, who, as we on this side know, have an insatiable appetite.

The Australian government does, of course, have a number of open and transparent schemes, including tax deductibility, to assist those who want to purchase land for conservation purposes, and we, of course, support that. But this is very different to the Labor Premier’s grubby Green deal to buy out jobs. Can I make it clear? The Vernons, who currently own the block in question, have every right to sell their property. I understand it was a difficult decision for the Vernon brothers, as they are quite rightly proud of the timber history of their land, which has been logged in the past with no impact on the heritage values of the block. But I cannot be firm enough in my belief that government should not be in the business of buying out sustainable forestry jobs. Australians should be proud of the renewable forest industry in this country, which is a world leader in terms of sustainability. If we continue to lock up more land for no good reason, Australians will be forced to import even more timber from the illegal, unregulated and unsustainable operators from Third World countries. It is further evidence of the renewable nature of our forest industry that environmentalists are so keen to preserve this regrowth forest.

This is another example of the state Labor Premier getting his priorities wrong. If Mr Lennon has hundreds of thousands of dollars available for conservation projects, could I direct him to Lady Barron on Flinders Island, that has a huge need for an upgraded sewage system that does not spill onto the foreshore, or to providing compensation to Tasmanian farmers who are being requested not to clear the non-forest vegetation areas on their property? Or, indeed, if he has got that amount of money available, he might like to spend it on the public hospital waiting list in the state. But, as we know, this man will buy anything for a political advantage, including Mr Richard Butler at $650,000. (Time expired)