Tuesday, 24 May 2022

Timber industry protests

Mr BLACKWOOD (Narracan) (19:20): (6374) I have an issue for the Minister for Agriculture, and the action I seek is that she take action to retrieve the unpaid court costs of MyEnvironment. Last week in the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee hearing the minister inferred that because MyEnvironment did not have the capacity to pay they should not be pursued. In effect the minister was saying that if you cannot pay your bills, you do not have to abide by the law. This is a disgrace and a kick in the guts to the hardworking taxpayers of Victoria, and it is clearly sending the wrong message. The directors of MyEnvironment at the time of the court decision were Sarah Rees and Steve Meacher, both of them serial litigants and feral green activists whose sole aim is to kill off the native timber industry in Victoria. On behalf of the Victorian taxpayer, Rees and Meacher should be pursued individually. Why should they be allowed to operate outside the law?

More recently, Environment East Gippsland were caught out and then admitted diverting $336 000 into a trust fund three weeks before commencing legal action against VicForests. The trustees of the subfund are Environment East Gippsland coordinator Jill Redwood, the group’s treasurer Trevor Coon and Victorian Greens party founder Linda Parlane. The court, by turning a blind eye to their actions, has conceded that it is okay to act outside the law.

VicForests has won every court case they have been subjected to and had to fund their own costs every time. Worse still, in one case, having won the case the judge still awarded all costs against VicForests. VicForests won its appeal against Friends of Leadbeater’s Possum, with the full court of the Federal Court agreeing that the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 did not apply to VicForests operations and that Justice Mortimer did not have jurisdiction to hear the matter. How come VicForests had costs awarded against them by the full Federal Court when costs are not ordinarily ordered against a successful party? This corrupt government and the judiciary are running a protection racket for feral green activists who continually act outside the law, and the taxpayer is always wearing the costs.

Recently we had the bizarre action taken in the Wombat forest by feral green protesters and also the Victorian National Parks Association, who have auspiced a campaign to try and stop the salvage harvesting of windblown trees. The salvage operation is being conducted by VicForests at the request of the traditional owners of the Dja Dja Wurrung group and their CEO, Rodney Carter. VicForests will assist with recovery work to restore country in disturbed areas of the forest and contribute to reducing fuel loads and reducing the fire risk to communities. One has to ask the question: are those opposed to the restoration of country, the VNPA and their feral green protesters, actually racist? The minister must step in and send a clear message to feral activists that she will not stand for the taxpayer continually paying the bill for serial litigants who continue to act outside the law.

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Just before I call the member for Broadmeadows, it is unfortunate that the member for Narracan reflected on the judiciary. It is not acceptable in the house.