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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-11-23 Daily Xml
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FORESTRYSA

The Hon. J.S. LEE (15:00): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Forests a question about the forward sales of ForestrySA.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.S. LEE: The parliamentary select committee was established to inquire into harvesting rights in Forestry SA plantations. However, before the committee could table the report to parliament, the government has been actively seeking expressions of interest for the first stage of the sale of up to three South-East forest rotations. The South-East community believes that the Weatherill government has shown complete disregard for the parliamentary process by placing South Australian future timber rotations on the market before the finalisation of the upper house inquiry.

Since his appointment, Premier Weatherill has openly promised South Australians he will stop Labor's announce and defend approach. My question to the minister is: without the government's reading the full report of the ForestrySA select committee, how does this action reflect the Weatherill government infamous motto of debate and decide?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Tourism, Minister for the Status of Women) (15:01): The government sees the forestry select committee as nothing more than a political stunt. We could probably write the report for them, given the membership of that committee, and we could write for them the anticipated recommendations. It is nothing short of a political stunt.

We have the future prosperity of this state at stake, and we have clearly put on the table our agenda around the forward sale of ForestrySA's harvesting rights for the South-East. We have outlined an engagement process. We have set up a round table. As I said, we have put in place a number of really important steps to ensure there is a long-term, sustainable industry maintained in that region. We have looked at setting up a number of conditions that can be applied to any contract if that goes ahead, because we have always said the price has to be right. We have looked at conditions that could be applied to ensure a wide range of things such as:

to provide sawmill owners with ForestrySA log supply contracts, with an option to extend them for up to a further five years to protect job security;

to ensure that any sale conditions include a new purchaser agreeing to a rotation length consistent with the current and planned ForestrySA standards to maintain the standard of forest products from the region;

to ensure there is a commitment from the new purchaser to match the ForestrySA current level of planned viable domestic supply to guarantee a future local timber industry; and also

require that any successful purchaser report yearly to the government to ensure that they meet their contractual obligations.

So we have put in place a number of safeguards, and I understand expressions of interest have commenced. There is no way this state government would jeopardise the long-term financial prosperity and security of this state by placing it into the hands of a group of people who have set up a committee for no purpose other than a political stunt.

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