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

Indeed, great news in the state of Tasmania last week and, in particular, in the very important economic driver that is forestry in my state. Last week the University of Tasmania vice-chancellor, Peter Rathjen, announced plans for the university to expand its centre for research into the forest industry, thanks in part to funding from the federal government. The university centre will be funded by $3.6 million from the federal government's Australian Research Council, which will be matched by industry and the university contributions to raise $14 million required for the development of an Industrial Transformation Training Centre. The centre will be a collaboration between the university and seven industry partners in a plan to produce industry ready PhD students and postdoctoral research fellows to drive a transformation of my state's traditionally based forestry sector.

I share the university's view that there is a huge potential for Tasmania's forestry sector to be transformed from the commodity driven, low-technology industry of the past into something very, very special indeed. The capacity to create value around forestry and wood products and timber has to be one of the keys to unlocking Tasmania's economic revival. The sector of the future will, of course, have to look very different to the industry of the past, and this new centre will help lay the groundwork. Australian Forestry Products Association chief executive Ross Hampton also welcomed the funding announcement for this centre. Like him, I agree that it will be a promising start and a step very much in the right direction for research and development in this important sector.

The rest of the world is focused on the potential of forestry and wood products as the greenest of industries to contribute to a future, environmentally sustainable world. Wood is part of the solution. Wood is, indeed, the fibre of the future. There is already investment in new uses of timber for everything built from building systems to biomaterials to smarter packages, be that laminated timber structures—and I mention, for example, the Forte building in Docklands in Melbourne—and plastic replacements. Australia and Tasmania, in particular, has a huge potential to be an innovative leader and a major player in the demand globally for fibre.

One of the things that Tasmania is really good at doing is growing trees, and clever and innovative downstream processing should be an essential component of that capacity.

The government has committed to supporting my home state towards a stronger and brighter future. We said we would do that and this is a practical way in which the Commonwealth government is supporting one of the key industries in my state of Tasmania. There is a significant amount of money; a significant vote of confidence in the timber sector. Wood was the fibre of the 17th century, steel was the fibre of the 18th century, concrete was the fibre of the 20th century and wood will—again—be the fibre of the 21st century. (Time expired)