Northern Victoria Region
Mr QUILTY (Northern Victoria) (12:41): (1938) My constituency question is to the Minister for Environment and Climate Action. Evidence obtained through freedom of information shows that your government had already agreed to a ban on sustainable hardwood harvesting before the 2018 election. Despite that, you only announced the plan after the election, in late 2019. Timber mills across my electorate are set to be devastated by this plan. Mills in Corryong and Wombat forest are already suffering because of it. I am sure many timber workers voted for Labor not knowing that you were planning on destroying their livelihoods. These people have been tricked. I believe in honest government. That means politicians should be up-front about what they plan on doing. They should take their plans to elections to let the public know what they are voting on. Northern Victorian timber workers cannot trust this government, and they will not vote for it again. Minister, will you confirm that you are not hiding any more attacks on the timber industry or the Northern Victorian economy that you will only be revealing after the next election?