Tuesday, 18 February 2020

Timber industry

Mr T BULL (Gippsland East) (13:31): It is with disappointment that I report to the house that the timber industry workers who were at the forefront of our bushfire defence and then recovery are not back in full-time work as yet. The reality is, with so much salvage harvesting to be done and many more roadsides to be cleared, they should be busier than ever.

I also note that in question time last sitting week the Premier responded to a question by saying:

I think something like 50 per cent of coupes that were part of the timber release plan have been burnt. The impact will be significant.

These are mixed species coupes in Gippsland, and they recover. They actually need fire to reproduce. They do not all die. They are now sprouting new growth, and even if they were burnt they can still be harvested. So we need to get to those timber industry workers, show them some respect and get them back to work.