Benambra electorate
Bill TILLEY (Benambra) (14:57): (1188) My constituency question is for the Minister for Environment. The information I seek is an explanation as to how the reduction in fisheries officers across the state serves to protect the platypus in the Benambra district. The Labor governments both in this state and the Commonwealth were very quick to pat themselves on the back with a press release, dated 12 June, entitled ‘Working together to help the platypus thrive’. But with the other hand, the Victorian state government is removing the very thing that protects the platypus – talk about duplicity. I have seen a number of photos of seven dead platypus removed from an illegal fyke net in the Werribee River. Fisheries officers had to kayak into the area due to no road access. This is a scene repeated right across Victoria. Who will do this now? Restoring critical habitat is one thing, but who will protect these iconic native animals? I seek leave to table a couple of the images of these platypus for distribution.