Wednesday, 8 February 2023

Questions without notice and ministers statements

Timber industry

Samantha RATNAM (Northern Metropolitan) (12:00): (17) My question is to the Minister for Agriculture. Yesterday I joined a protest on the steps of Parliament calling for the end of native forest logging. I heard how desperate VicForests is becoming as it logs ever more sensitive ecosystems. This comes after reports that Nippon Paper may close down part of its Maryvale operations due to a lack of wood supply. Minister, the writing is on the wall for native forest logging in Victoria. There are simply no more areas to log that are not in sensitive biodiverse areas. So I ask: will the government bring forward its transition package for the industry and workers and end native forest logging for good this year?

Gayle TIERNEY (Western Victoria – Minister for Training and Skills, Minister for Higher Education, Minister for Agriculture) (12:01): I thank the member for the question. As a matter of context I will say the following, and that is that the framing of this whole issue has three parts. Essentially, the Liberal coalition opposition’s position in terms of the timber industry is I think a position that is, one, inconsistent, because they have got their heads in the sand. They –

David Davis: On a point of order, President, question time is not an opportunity for the minister to have a go at the opposition in response to a question from Ms Ratnam. The truth of the matter is she should just answer the question.

The PRESIDENT: Mr Davis, when you have a point of order I will call you and then you will give the point of order. But I am actually going to uphold your point of order. Question time is not on opportunity just to attack people in the chamber, so I will bring the minister back to the question.

Gayle TIERNEY: Thank you, President. I was characterising the opposition’s position in terms of the timber industry before then going on to characterise the Greens’ position and then coming back to what the government’s position is. In terms of the Liberal Party and the National Party, they just do not want to understand or consider what the important issues are within the industry. I characterised it as ‘head in the sand’ but also inconsistent, because –

Matthew Bach: On a point of order, President, you ruled earlier, and the minister has now repeated exactly the same expression that you based your ruling upon. She is openly flouting your ruling, and she should be made to desist and to actually answer the question.

The PRESIDENT: I think she was putting a different context, so I would not believe she was flouting my ruling. I will just call her back to the question.

Gayle TIERNEY: Thank you, President. Then of course the Greens position, to be quite frank, is one where they want the timber industry to cease immediately.

Of course the government’s position is in opposition to those opposite and is in opposition to the Greens position. Our position is that we understand that the current situation is very complex. We absolutely understand that. We understand that there are significant challenges throughout the timber industry. But we knew that several years ago, and that is why we developed the Victorian Forestry Plan. Of course that is a staged transition. We do understand that this is an industry in transition. Our approach is to have a managed approach to that transition.

But not only that, what we are doing at the moment is providing some stabilising mechanisms to ensure that workers can get paid that are currently stood down at Opal. Indeed the forestry plan also has associated grants funding that provides support to communities, townships – timber communities – as well as industries and companies attached to the timber industry. Of course we have also provided and will continue to provide support mechanisms as people are leaving but also whilst they are still employed to provide them with information and also other health services that are available. So our position is to have a much more – (Time expired)

Samantha RATNAM (Northern Metropolitan) (12:05): Thank you, Minister, for your response. Right now VicForests are so desperate they are logging in the Wombat State Forest, which the government have promised to turn into a national park, and have even proposed logging in the Dandenongs national park and in the High Country next to our most famous bushwalking trail. Does the government believe it is appropriate for VicForests to be logging in national parks or areas about to become national parks?

Gayle Tierney: I would love to answer that question, but I do not believe it is for me.

The PRESIDENT: Have you put that as a point of order? You do not believe it is for you. Who do you think it should be directed to: Minister Stitt? Dr Ratnam, I will give you a chance to rephrase. It sounds like it is not –

Members interjecting.

The PRESIDENT: Yes. So if you want to you can rephrase your supplementary in response to the minister’s response to your previous question.

Samantha RATNAM: For the sake of clarity, what I am trying to articulate is the behaviour of VicForests, who are getting so desperate, in the context that the transition is taking too long. There are not going to be forests left to log at this rate if we do not bring forward the end of native forest logging.

Gayle TIERNEY (Western Victoria – Minister for Training and Skills, Minister for Higher Education, Minister for Agriculture) (12:07): I am also trying to answer this, but I think that was more of a statement than a question, Dr Ratnam.