Julian McGauran (Victoria, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation, Senator Eric Abetz. What are the implications for the timber industry of Saturday’s election?

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Can I thank Senator McGauran for his question and note how ably he represents the state of Victoria in this place.

Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Banking and Financial Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Sherry interjecting—

John Hogg (Queensland, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Senator Sherry, and others, I need to hear the minister’s response in silence.

Trish Crossin (NT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No, you don’t.

John Hogg (Queensland, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I do.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As a result of the Victorian election, another 40,000 hectares of forest will be locked away from sustainable timber harvesting. This is on top of the 21½ million hectares of forest which is already reserved in Australia. This further timber lock-up will put extra pressure on our remaining timber reserves. And it may not be in the terms of the East Gippsland Regional Forest Agreement—my department is seeking advice from Victoria in this regard. I will also be watching very closely to see that the Labor claims that there will be no job losses in the timber industry are adhered to. The most concerning aspect of this timber lock-up is that the decision was not based on any scientific evidence or on any environmental imperatives. Rather, it was done in a cynical attempt to appease the Greens, who of course can never be appeased. Fortunately the voters of Victoria, like the voters of Tasmania earlier this year, are beginning to see through the Greens. Despite all the claims of the Greens about their result, the simple fact is that the Greens primary vote went backwards at Saturday’s election. Let us remember that, on election day, Greens leader Senator Brown said this in a press release:

Our projections are for three seats in the upper house with a very good chance in eastern metro and the potential for at least one rural upper house seat.

To be clear, that is five seats that Senator Brown was predicting. Yet, this morning, talking to Fran Kelly on Radio National, Senator Brown said, ‘The Greens never predicted five upper house seats.’ Can I advise: Senator Brown did predict five in a press release.

No amount of misleading of the Australian public and trying to rewrite the history will hide the fact that the Greens vote declined in Victoria, as it did in Tasmania. It declined because the community is coming to understand that an appropriate balance has been struck between sustainable forestry and the environment and that the Greens represent the extreme left-wing, kooky, nutbag policies.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You can hear the cacophony of the Green-Labor—

John Hogg (Queensland, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Abetz is entitled to be heard in reasonable silence.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A lot has been said about Saturday’s election, but I think Jason Koutsoukis of the Age was closest to the mark yesterday in commenting on the Greens’ abysmal performance:

They were a flop in 2004, they were a flop yesterday and all indications are that the Greens will flop again at the ... federal election.

For Australia’s sake, I hope that that is the case. Sensible, practical environmentalism which includes a sustainable forest industry is what the Howard government has delivered to this nation and I encourage state governments to follow that lead.