Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

The Regional Forest Agreement between the Commonwealth and Tasmania was an agreement—supported by both sides of parliament, I might add—that really underpinned the very successful and vibrant forestry industry in Tasmania. I want to raise in this chamber the issue of the Gunns mill in Tasmania, which is dependent upon the local forestry industry for its material. Of course the Regional Forest Agreements instituted by the Howard government underpinned the arrangements for the forestry industry in Tasmania.

I simply cannot believe that activity by a small minority of Tasmanians, reflected in this chamber by the Greens political party, can possibly yet again—it has happened twice in the shortish history of Tasmania—bring about the demise of a facility which could provide so many jobs and so much wealth for the island state. I appreciate that my Tasmanian colleagues will, perhaps on other days, speak on this, and perhaps they understand more than I the importance of the pulp mill. It annoys me that a small group is attempting to destroy a business that could be so good for Tasmania. The attempt two or three decades ago to build a pulp mill—