Josh Wilson (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On Saturday evening in New York, after two decades of negotiations, the global community achieved a very significant milestone. The United Nations High Seas Treaty is an historic global agreement which will place 30 per cent of the world's oceans into protected areas by 2030. It will help protect and sustain marine biodiversity outside our national jurisdictions and will extend legally binding protection into international waters. There's no question overfishing and pollution threaten the health and sustainability of our oceans. This treaty will put in place measures to protect marine life, establish new ocean sanctuaries and help deliver nature positive outcomes through stronger impact assessments. It will safeguard food security and all the livelihoods that depend on the high seas.

We should take some pride in the fact that Australia worked hard to achieve this ambitious treaty and also supported the participation of our friends in the Pacific. Of course, it was Labor that created Australia's national network of marine parks, and I congratulate the Minister for the Environment and Water for announcing the effective tripling of the Macquarie Island Marine Park just the other day. I also commend the work of civil society groups and all those who have campaigned for this long-sought-after high-seas agreement. It demonstrates not only how the Albanese Labor government recognises the need for stronger environmental protection but also what the international community can achieve through focused negotiation when it's guided by the science.