Tuesday, 3 October 2023

Polwarth electorate

Richard RIORDAN (Polwarth) (14:47): (326) My question this afternoon is for the Minister for Agriculture, and the question I ask is: will the minister be renewing commercial firewood permits after 31 December this year? Having asked the government already this question and not having been furnished with an answer, I ask the question again. I ask this question because literally thousands of regional Victorians rely heavily on the availability of firewood for home heating, home cooking and just going about daily business. Firewood merchants right around country Victoria are sitting eagerly awaiting. They have had no notification. The department of agriculture has not been clear in its advice. We are now only a few months away from the expiration of literally a $100 million-plus industry that is vital for the energy supply here in Victoria. People need answers. They do not want cheap talk about potential compensation. They want to keep going with this industry. They want to keep supplying and looking after their customers.