Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Bob Brown for his question. When we talk about the issue around Tasmania and the contractors' package, can I indicate at the outset that was an area where it was incredibly important to support the Tasmanian forest contractors in Tasmania for their outcomes in the reduced effort that was needed.

The Gillard Labor government values and recognises Tasmania and the ecological, social and economic aspects of our native forest resources. We consider that it is important to get the balance right and a sustainable approach to how we manage our native forests. We also recognise the challenges, including capacity issues, that were facing the Tasmanian forestry industry.

During the 2010 federal election campaign, as you correctly identified, the Gillard Labor government committed $20 million to help Tasmanian forest contractors and their employees. We did exceed that commitment on 23 November 2010 when we announced $22.4 million for the Australian government funding package. If I go through the explanation of the package, it will answer the question you asked about New South Wales because this package was designed to deal with the oversupply of contractors in that sector while continuing to support viable ongoing businesses in Tasmania. The package was developed following discus­sions with the Tasmanian government representatives from the Tasmanian forestry industry and the CFMEU. The measures included both exit and financial support measures. (Time expired)