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Legislative Council - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-09-09 Daily Xml
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AUSTRALIAN BIGHT ABALONE

The Hon. C.V. SCHAEFER (15:24): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the minister representing the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries a question about Australian Bight Abalone.

Leave granted.

The Hon. C.V. SCHAEFER: Australian Bight Abalone, which claimed a trading profit at the end of last financial year, is now in the hands of a receiver. It is a managed investment scheme publicly funded company. High hopes were held for this company on Eyre Peninsula that it would provide much needed work and a new industry for the region. Naturally, there is now widespread concern, not to mention quite a lot of financial loss within the area at this collapse. It is contended that ABA has its lease outside the marine park boundary, even though its licensed area abuts a seal colony.

I also note that the administrators have, as late as the 3rd of this month, been again granted an exemption from the Fisheries Management Act to harvest 500 tonnes of algae and seagrass from the shore. The usual exemptions, as I understand, are about 50 tonnes. It is further alleged that the size of the ABA lease is much larger than usual and that there is an exclusive lease over all of Anxious Bay for any aquaculture granted to ABA.

Professor Anthony Cheshire lists, among his many appointments, Chair of the Scientific Working Group for Marine Parks Authority and Chair of the South Australian Fisheries Research Advisory Board. As at the end of the financial year last year (30 June of last year), Professor Cheshire was also a director of ABA, as was the well known lobbyist Nick Bolkus. My questions are:

1. Are these two gentlemen still directors of ABA and, if not, when did they resign?

2. Was all due process used in assessing any possible conflict of interest for Professor Cheshire?

3. Was due process used and are there records showing why ABA was granted such a large lease on such a contentious site and, if so, will those records be made public?

4. What exemptions were granted to ABA by the South Australian or federal governments, and what were they for?

5. What role was played by Nick Bolkus or Anthony Cheshire in obtaining the original licence and lease and any subsequent leases or licences?

6. What, if any, assistance was afforded to ABA by this government or the federal government?

7. Is the state government a listed creditor of ABA?

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning, Minister for Small Business) (15:27): I will refer those questions to the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries.

The Hon. D.W. Ridgway: You were the minister for a while.

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY: Yes, I was the minister for a time. In fact, I am very disappointed with the news about that, because as the minister who had the responsibility for the Aquaculture Act during its early phase—it was actually passed during the dying days of the Kerin government; in fact, I think the Hon. Ms Schaefer had a fair bit to do with that particular bill—I have always paid tribute to the opposition for introducing that legislation. I am sorry that honourable members opposite have perhaps lost some enthusiasm for the industry.

It is disappointing, but inevitably there were going to be failures in that industry. I spent the first two years as the minister for fisheries defending a number of attacks, particularly around the Fitzgerald Bay area, where people were saying that escaped kingfish were eating all the whiting, and so on. There were many attacks on the industry at that stage, and I was a staunch defender of it.

So, it is disappointing to see that this abalone industry has problems but, given the rapid growth that you have in these sorts of industries, it is probably not surprising that from time to time some of those industries will not survive. Obviously, if you are fish farming in a new area there will be issues that arise that were probably not anticipated. As I understand it, particularly with ABA being in a managed investment scheme, there are issues relating to the financing of that undertaking. I will refer the question to the minister in another place and bring back a response.

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