Trevor Evans (Brisbane, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to rise to speak on the report Living with fruit bats: inquiry into flying-fox management in the eastern states. This report of the inquiry into flying fox management in the eastern states holds a special place in my heart because it is the first inquiry process I have been through from start to finish as a new MP.

The topic arose as a consequence of some of the practical difficulties—well described by the previous speaker, the member for Hunter—in the balancing act between the liveability in some of our suburbs and the importance of proper species protection. In the inquiry we heard from people who are, naturally, concerned to ensure the ongoing strength and viability of flying fox populations. We also heard from local councils who have been struggling to contain the impacts on residents when flying fox communities move into areas in great numbers, making people's homes virtually uninhabitable. It was a topic that grabbed me from the start given that, since childhood, I have had an interest in and love of Australia's natural environment, and given my inner-city electorate, where three of Australia's four species of flying fox can be found.

My experience in this parliamentary process has really reinforced my faith in the ability of parliamentary committees to hear different points of view, consider the evidence and balance competing interests in a transparent and mostly bipartisan way. We had all the stakeholders and experts around a big table here in this parliament last year, and we facilitated a conversation that drew out some of the stories, some of the opportunities and some of the challenges that arise when we live with flying foxes. In an age when some say that parliamentary democracy is ill-suited to meeting the demands of a population increasingly looking for quick fixes and instant gratification, more people should be aware of the good work done by our parliamentary committees, often in a bipartisan way.

The four recommendations that were made by the committee are targeted, appropriate and meaningful, but I take the point made by the member for Hunter that there were no huge breakthroughs in terms of managing these issues. The committee recommended that the Commonwealth play a leadership role to help councils and local residents to more easily find the right advice and information right from the start, to help with these issues when they arise. Many of the problems that did arise in the stories we heard from councils and residents struggling to find the right advice were from misinformation that was misdirecting residents to take various actions, and misdirecting councils sometimes as well into making unrealistic commitments to their residents. The committee recommended that the Commonwealth play a coordinating role when it comes to tracking flying fox numbers, management actions and research. The committee also recommended that we continue our existing funding, as well as better fund research and conservation efforts, so that we better understand flying fox populations, which are notoriously difficult to assess, given they are flying mammals who can travel individually sometimes up to thousands of kilometres in just a number of days. The committee also recommended that the department create a tool for assisting councils to make better decisions around action and referral, as well a suite of education resources to be made available to the Australian community.

Some important observations can be made on the way through. Firstly, flying foxes are an important part of our ecosystem. Without the pollination and seed distribution actions of flying foxes many of our species of gum trees and other native flora would die out. Secondly, when Australians think we do not have migratory megafauna to manage, like other continents such as Africa and North America, maybe we need to rethink some of our approaches to regional habitat management. Thirdly, whilst some flying foxes, admittedly, may seem at first blush to have faces that only a mother could love, if you look again more carefully maybe, just maybe, you will be persuaded to shift your opinion.

On a serious point, though, while some of the world's largest, most identifiable and possibly fluffiest creatures seem to get all of the attention and the funding when it comes to species conservation, I have always been a big believer since my early days as a kid—when I was passionate about native fish species, such as the threatened honey blue-eye and the purple spotted gudgeon—that the dullest and the ugliest of our creatures, sometimes both great and small, deserve our care and attention just as much.

Australia is our sanctuary—an economic sanctuary, an environmental sanctuary and a sanctuary affording us safety from many of the ills and the miseries in the wider world. We should take very seriously the responsibility that comes with having the custodianship of both a country and a continent. This inquiry was important work. I am proud of this report. I am proud of this parliament and of our liberal democracy. I commend this report to the House. I commend the recommendations of the inquiry to the minister, the department and their counterparts in the state and territory governments.

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