Mitch Fifield (Victoria, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

As you know, Leadbeater's possum is Victoria's animal emblem. It is important not to confuse it with Victoria's marine faunal emblem, the weedy seadragon, or Victoria's bird emblem, the helmeted honeyeater. I can share with colleagues that Minister Hunt is already taking emergency action to protect Leadbeater's possum. On 16 July 2015 he launched Australia's first threatened species strategy, which set out specific actions and targets to turn around the decline of 20 mammals, including Leadbeater's possum, by 2020. We have committed over $110 million towards threatened species conservation, including to help Leadbeater's possum. The government looks forward to continuing to work with the Victorian government on a new recovery plan for Leadbeater's possum that will detail further actions to turn around the species's decline. The government supports regional forest agreements, as they balance the environmental, social and economic objectives for native forest management.

Question negatived.