Tuesday, 20 February 2024

Gippsland East electorate

Tim BULL (Gippsland East) (14:44): (502) My constituency question is to the Minister for Environment, and the information I seek for farmers in my electorate is whether there are any plans to terminate or reduce the wild dog control program. A dogger recently retired in my electorate, and his position was not advertised. There has been no commentary at all from this government around support for that program. There is also talk that all wild dogs with any dingo DNA will be recognised as dingoes and therefore afforded greater protections, which causes concern. There are issues around the 3-kilometre buffer zone, with talk of it being abolished. Now, it does need to be abolished, but it needs to be abolished for a different reason than those people are proposing, and that is to get doggers into the wider bush to undertake their control programs. We would welcome some commentary from the minister around support for the wild dog program, but I would start by asking him to clarify whether there are any plans to terminate or reduce the program.