Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Senator Ludwig. I refer to the press conference that the minister held yesterday with the minister for the environment, in which he said he was introducing new fisheries legislation because he was uncertain of the effects that larger boats would have on the industry. I also refer to the 26 July statement available on the AFMA website, which says:

AFMA has found no evidence that larger boats pose a higher risk to either commercial species or broader marine ecosystem when total catches are limited and the limits are enforced.

How can the minister claim that there was uncertainty about larger boats when the evidence from AFMA was so clear and so unambiguous?