Thursday, 23 June 2022

Bills

Sustainable Forests Timber Amendment (Timber Harvesting Safety Zones) Bill 2022

Second reading

Debate resumed on motion of Ms THOMAS:

That this bill be now read a second time.

Ms McLEISH (Eildon) (16:31): I think everyone in this place agrees on how important it is to have a safe workplace, and for too long our forest workers have not had a safe workplace. They have been let down by the government, who at this very late stage have decided to take action to protect them but also to provide some small degree of protection for the timber industry, because we know that they are happy to see that phased out by 2030, but we also know that the timber shortages at the moment are of great concern. The government does need to make sure that some harvesting can continue, and it is important that it continues with these protections for our workers. For too long they have been subjected to some pretty ordinary behaviour, and I know this quite well because I have many of those coupes that we are talking about in my electorate but I also have a lot of timber workers in my electorate and they tell me the stories. They will come to my office. I have spoken to some of them in the street when I have bumped into them, and they tell me about the illegal behaviour that has been able to be tolerated up to this moment.

We know that essentially the environmentalists are protesting to stop timber harvesting. That is their ultimate goal. We know when there is timber harvesting that very heavy machinery is being used, and you need to have considerable expertise about how to use this equipment and how to use it very safely within the confines and the protections of the coupes. While some protests have been peaceful and have been legal, there are others that have not, and it is those ones that have not that have posed particular stressors to the timber harvesters and the workers. We have had people chain themselves to the gear, which prevents somebody from working and makes it very difficult for them to even unchain them. We have had people in tree-sits—and I have seen the photos of canopies in Toolangi where people have popped up—and you cannot continue to work in those circumstances.

That illegal activity is something that stops the harvesting, but we have that additional complexity and danger when we have camouflaged protesters making their way illegally into the coupe. We call these the ‘black wallabies’. They have dark gear and balaclavas and they dart around, often in the dark. As the harvesters are getting set up to do their work for the day, they may for a short period of time be in complete dark while they have to go around and engage the lights, and they can have a protester pop out of the bush and scare them absolutely. Also with these people darting in and out of the bush in dark gear, heavily camouflaged, it is very easy for the machinery operator not to be able to see these protesters, and if they do not see these protesters, what can happen is that they can be hit. This is enormously stressful for the machine operator—it seems to be less stressful for the protesters darting around—but this has been able to continue, and it is about time that this will be stopped through the protections in this bill.

One of the things that I do like about this bill is that there are new powers for the police and the authorised officers to ban individuals on the spot. They will be able to ban them from one coupe or associated coupes or others in a wider area. There are offences already, but this is an additional level, and I think that is something that could be very useful if applied. I will just mention also that there have been additions to the prohibited items. The prohibited items are outlined in the current act, but these have been added to to include PVC and metal pipes, which apparently are things that the protesters are using to continue about their illegal activities.

There are a couple of things that I wish were a little bit tighter. Even though we have got the definition of the coupe and the roads coming into it, if you can see somebody who is just outside of the coupe—out of that protected zone—and you can see that they have prohibited items on their body, up their jumper or things like that, the police are powerless in those instances to do something about it. That is something that I certainly think should be altered. But I was happy to support the timber workers in my electorate who for too long have been ignored, and I know that the CFMEU have been standing up for them. It has been falling on deaf ears in the government for quite some time, so it seems now that the government is starting to listen and to protect these timber workers.

The ACTING SPEAKER (Ms Suleyman): The member for Kennedy—sorry, Hawthorn. It is Thursday. I am getting too excited. My apologies, member for Hawthorn.

Mr KENNEDY (Hawthorn) (16:36): Thank you, Acting Speaker. I am looking forward to a name change for my electorate if I do the right thing—or the left thing. I am glad today to be speaking on the Sustainable Forests Timber Amendment (Timber Harvesting Safety Zones) Bill 2022. I have heard concerns from both the Greens and my own constituents about how these changes will affect logging protesters. I understand these issues, and I appreciate the civility of the constituents of mine who have approached me and my office about this sensitive issue. However, as has been explained to them, these changes only apply to timber harvesting safety zones. This means that individuals protesting safely outside these zones will not be affected by these proposed changes. Protesters who genuinely engage in safe activities can continue their business as before, as can citizen scientists and other individuals who use the forest within the law.

I understand the passion of these protesters, especially in the face of the existential threat of climate change and the associated ecological crisis. However, the 2030 ban is already an ambitious step, and we are a government committed to the protection of all workers. We saw this with our introduction of workplace manslaughter laws, and we see it again today. The safety of our workers is a fundamental commitment of the Labor Party, and this commitment extends to our timber workers. It is simply in our DNA.

I would like to just say a few words about the government’s track record on logging. I would like to take this opportunity to emphasise the strong track record of this government. We announced the Victorian Forestry Plan in 2019, and we will continue to assist the timber industry as it transitions away from native timber harvesting. This will result in a continued supply of native timber until 2024 and then a gradual decline until the end of native timber harvesting in 2030. Plantations will be the future of the timber-growing industry in this state. Indeed since the 1980s we have seen a more than halving of the available native timber for logging due to the impact of bushfires and environmental protections. Once again there is more than just empty words at play here. We are a government that delivers on its commitments. To back this ambitious goal up we have delivered a $200 million transition package. This will support workers, businesses and communities as they go through this change. It will also back in industry as it transitions to alternative timber supplies, like plantation timber.

We all know how important our environment is. I have spoken to countless constituents, young and old, concerned about the effects of climate and the protection of our forests. That is why we have the 2030 end of native timber logging set in stone. This guarantee, combined with our innovative industry support, strikes a fair balance between the needs of the environment and the needs of our logging workers. I myself am a regular at our local environmental group, Lighter Footprints, and my support for ambitious climate targets is well established. Pre-poll I witnessed firsthand the groundswell of support for the new federal member for Kooyong, which was largely built on her well-founded desire for more ambitious climate action. But it is more than that; it is a genuine care for the environment and the future of our planet. We saw this with the massive climate protests led by our young generation. I am myself inspired to see this challenge taken up with such gusto as I strive for a Hawthorn that is fair, productive and compassionate.

But it is important to remember our logging workers, who have also contacted me about their concerns and their worries through the process. That is what this bill is about: protecting these workers whilst maintaining our ambitious climate and logging goals. Indeed from mid-2024 to 2030 a competitive process will be used to allocate timber. Then commercial harvesting in public native forests will end. I see the end of old-growth logging as one of the great environmental achievements of our government, and indeed I learned to value our ecological diversity in the time I spent teaching in rural areas in Albury-Wodonga.

This brings me to the notion of striking a balance. This legislation, like many of the laws we debate within this chamber, is fundamentally about striking a balance between two competing rights. I recognise the qualms of environmental groups about this legislation; however, the need to maintain the safety of our workers is paramount. We have seen tens of thousands of protesting about climate change and other environmental issues in this state in recent years, and I applaud their commitment to that vital cause. We all know of the $2 billion spent and the legislation passed in this chamber on that issue. Our current logging laws are ambitious, and it is important that workers in this industry are protected and supported while it goes through this incredibly wideranging change. I sympathise with the concerns expressed by my constituents about this issue. However, the simple fact is that our logging policy needs to be implemented in a safe manner. Whilst I know I am repeating the same point ad nauseam, it is because I want to make it clear that this legislation is about protecting workers.

We are a Labor government; it is what we do. We know that our logging, overall climate and environmental policies are progressive and far reaching. We are proud to be the most progressive government in the most progressive state, Victoria, but whilst we roll out these ambitious policy changes, it is important that no Victorian is left behind. That is why these logging changes include $200 million in funding to support the transition, and that is why we are introducing these laws. It is vital that we support our timber workers, and that is just a simple aim of this bill. However, it is also important to remember how ambitious our logging and climate policies are. I have found this a very interesting topic. At our Hawthorn branch meeting, when somebody in the group got really upset about this particular piece of legislation, I was quite surprised by it, to tell you the truth. But when you try and put this in the context of balancing rights, and the rights that have been enunciated there, I think we can have some greater sympathy for the bill itself. So I am glad to commend this bill to the house.

The ACTING SPEAKER (Ms Suleyman): The member for Gippsland South.

Mr D O’BRIEN (Gippsland South) (16:46): Well done, Acting Speaker. Even the actual Speaker cannot get that one right most of the time. I have made a big impression in my eight years here obviously.

A member: Not memorable.

Mr D O’BRIEN: No, clearly not. It actually is a pleasure to rise to speak on the Sustainable Forests Timber Amendment (Timber Harvesting Safety Zones) Bill 2022 because it is the first time since I have been in the Parliament with the Labor government here that we have actually seen something that supports our timber industry, and that is a good thing. That is absolutely a good thing. We are supporting this legislation, the Liberals and Nationals, led by our Nationals leader, the member for Murray Plains, as the shadow minister on this. But this is a good piece of legislation to try and put an end to the outrageous protest action that has been consistently hampering the harvesting activities in our native forest sector for many years now and has only got worse in recent times. I would say that this is the exception that proves the rule. I guess the government does not care about our forestry sector, because it is actually closing it down. So let us be aware of that: it is in fact closing down the native timber harvesting sector, and this is but a small thing on the way to improve it for our workers.

Just on that point, I want to just take up some of the speakers opposite, the member for Hawthorn in particular, who talked about how plantations are the future. Well, they may well be under the government’s policy, but the reality is that there are not the plantations in the ground for us to transition to. That is a fact that after a couple of years of talk the various ministers—Minister Symes and the current Minister for Agriculture—have ultimately acknowledged: that they have not got the timber in the ground. In terms of actually having a policy—and, again, the member for Hawthorn talked about this—and having a strategy and a plan, this government allocated $110 million to new plantations in the Latrobe Valley in the 2017 budget, and it still has not put a single extra new tree in the ground. The best it has done is replace what was already plantation land—500 hectares—which is about a couple of days of supply for the Australian Paper mill at Maryvale. It has not done anything with that $110 million. I have been asking about this at every Public Accounts and Estimates Committee inquiry, and still there has been no announcement as to what is happening with it.

However, I do say that the government’s decision is a good one with respect to this bill in bringing in these stronger penalties for protest action. The member for Eildon talked about the black wallaby actions, where camouflaged protesters run in and out to disrupt a harvesting operation. There are tree sits, where they literally set up on the road or elsewhere to stop logging activity from occurring. And of course there are the lock-ons, which are also addressed in this legislation.

But I want to address particularly the comments and the position of the Greens on this legislation. The Greens and green activist groups will say that this legislation is about stopping protests. Indeed the member for Brunswick said this is about stopping freedom of expression and human rights. The member for Brunswick also went on to say that this was authoritarianism. I do not remember the Greens standing up and worrying about authoritarianism when police were out there firing rubber bullets on protesters last year. It only seems to suit him when it suits their green argument. The notion that this is somehow stopping freedom of expression and human rights is absolute tosh. All this does is stop you from getting into a logging coupe and stopping those workers going about their legitimate business. You can stand out the front, exactly as—what are they called—Extinction Rebellion did on Tuesday, and protest in front of the Parliament. You can protest near the coupe, within 150 metres of it. The notion that this stops someone’s right to protest is just rubbish, and the Greens stand condemned for peddling this false truth on this particular legislation. It is ridiculous.

I would just like to add some of the other comments made by the Greens. The member for Brunswick, who has come in to listen—I hope he actually does listen—talked about this being a bad decision when we are facing a climate emergency. I go to a statement by the Leader of the Greens actually, who said that protecting the carbon stored in Victoria’s forests was essential climate action. Well, do the Greens not understand that when you cut a tree down and turn it into timber you do not let all the carbon disappear into the atmosphere? It is stored in the timber, and then you grow it again. And young trees absorb more carbon, so it is actually good for the environment. Indeed do not take my word for it, it is not just me that says this; the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said in its 2019 report:

… a sustainable forest management strategy aimed at maintaining or increasing forest carbon stocks, while producing an annual sustained yield of timber, fibre or energy from the forest, will generate the largest sustained mitigation benefit.

Well, there you have it. The IPCC says a sustainable forest industry harvesting timber for use by humans is actually going to be good for mitigation. I go on to again that statement from the Greens leader, who put in a quote that says, ‘Victoria is the most cleared state in Australia’. Well, that again just shows the Greens do not understand this. Native forest harvesting in Victoria is not about clearing, it is forestry. It is regenerative; they plant it again and it grows back. Clearing is what has happened over recent centuries where, certainly, land has been cleared for agriculture and the like. Native forestry is not clearing. So the Greens stand condemned for not understanding this issue and for peddling a lot of mistruths on it. The government at last has actually done something to support our timber industry workers in Gippsland and elsewhere. They stand condemned, though, for their actions in shutting down this industry. I am very proud to support this piece of legislation.

Ms VALLENCE (Evelyn) (16:52): It is a pleasure to rise to speak on the Sustainable Forests Timber Amendment (Timber Harvesting Safety Zones) Bill 2022. It is a necessary step forward to help protect timber workers in their workplaces, so we will be supporting this bill on behalf of the very hardworking, dedicated timber workers that do a fantastic job and contribute significantly to the Victorian economy. Timber harvesting coupes are hazardous worksites that must be carefully managed by well-trained, expert timber workers to ensure the safety of those on site, to ensure the protection of the environment and to protect the public.

I feel that the introduction of this bill being debated before us and these new protections for timber workers is really indicative of a tired Andrews Labor government that has done everything so far to cut down timber workers and to denigrate timber workers. Now in an election year they realise that they do not want an angry timber industry and they do not want a forestry union offside, and they have been dragged to the table for these important and long-overdue reforms. As I have said before in this chamber, I want to again put on the record my support and the Liberals’ and Nationals’ support for the timber harvesting industry, a sustainable native timber harvesting industry, that produces products from locally grown timber; the jobs and the careers that this industry creates; and of course the communities that this industry sustains. The Liberals and Nationals coalition is the only party in this Parliament that genuinely and wholeheartedly supports the timber industry. The government often talks about protecting the environment and supporting workers. To date they have done nothing but cut down those timber workers, so this is an important overdue step to actually provide some workplace protections for these timber workers.

As my colleague just said, we refer to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report on climate change and emissions reduction, something that is very important in climate action to actually deliver this for our community. The Andrews Labor government wants to shut down the timber industry, but we know and even the IPCC report says that a sustainable native timber industry is a crucial aspect and a welcome aspect to help reduce carbon emissions for communities right across the globe. It is the ultimate renewable resource.

I went to a neighbouring forest coupe up in Toolangi just recently with members from VicForests and the timber industry, and you would not know that this part of the world is actually being logged. They are very careful. They are very caring of the environment. They have their coupes. It is very hard to see, for someone going into that area, that they are actually logging. There is no wholesale logging. Anyone that says that there is logging of old-growth forests or wholesale logging is lying, is wrong. They do it very sustainably, and it is important because of course we know—construction, infrastructure—everyone needs wood and timber. Why not have a sustainable timber industry that we support in Victoria and Australia rather than taking it from unsustainable forests in Borneo, where they do not care about the wildlife or the protection of the environment?

This bill really is about the timber worker. I thank the CEO of the Victorian Forest Products Association, Deb Kerr, for her comment, which I wholeheartedly agree with, that every person has the right to be safe at work, and this bill is that very important step forward to ensuring the safety of forestry workers but also, importantly, the safety of the public and any one member of the public who might seek to protest, which is a legitimate thing, but not when it damages a workplace or puts a worker at risk.

The Andrews Labor government has a very strong record of going easy on protesters to the detriment of timber workers, many of whom are public servants through VicForests. But this is a very important and necessary step, and really this bill aims to better protect forestry workers from any inappropriate and illegal protesting activities. The bill actually provides that any protesters who illegally enter harvesting coupes in Victoria and dangerously interfere with workers and their machinery will be subject to stronger penalties, including maximum fines of more than $21 000 or 12 months imprisonment. This does not mean to say that anyone cannot protest. It means that they should not enter and damage or make the workplace unsafe for these Victorians, who work hard to make a salary and put food on the table. These workers should be able to go to work, do their job and get home safely. It is a long overdue measure.

Again, I just take the opportunity to say that whilst the government have put forward this bill in recognition that they had been doing everything to damage, hurt and cut down timber workers, they are doing this now because they are worried about their prospects at the next election. They are doing this to appease the forestry division of the CFMEU. They are doing this because of the pressure of the Liberals and Nationals, who have said that these timber workers should be supported and that this industry must be supported. So I really feel that introducing this bill, from our perspective, is a bit of an ‘I told you so’ moment. We told them so. When we referred to a bill that came before the Parliament earlier this year, the Conservation, Forests and Lands Amendment Bill 2022, we highlighted how the penalties for workers in the timber industry were only going to damage them and cause anxiety and strain. So this is just the Andrews Labor government playing catch-up. Timber workers have been treated disgracefully by the Andrews Labor government so far. We should be doing everything to support these workers, their livelihoods and the contribution that they make to Victoria.

The SPEAKER: Well timed. The time set down for consideration of items on the government business program has arrived, and I am required to interrupt business.

Motion agreed to.

Read second time.

Third reading

House divided on motion:

Motion agreed to.

Read third time.

The SPEAKER: The bill will now be sent to the Legislative Council and their agreement requested.