7 June
2006 - Today, Opposition Leader Kim Beazley has
again been caught out twisting the facts to suit
his political purpose.
This time, it is over whether
the Government burns illegal foreign fishing vessels.
Mr Beazley's claim the Howard Government does
not burn illegal fishing boats is the same misleading
nonsense he engaged in when he was caught out
wrongly claiming that a Perth hospital was on
“bypass” when his daughter needed treatment in
2001.
Today's West Australian newspaper
says:
“Burn illegal fish boats: Labor”
(The West Australian, 7 June 2006)
I attach a front page story
from the Northern Territory News showing Treasurer
Peter Costello doing just that just three weeks
ago, on 17 May, 2006.
Not only has this been a long-standing
practice by the Howard Government, but it was
a central plank in the massively increased budget
to combat illegal fishing, announced in May.
The only reason an illegal fishing
vessel may not be taken to shore and burnt is
if doing so would pose an unacceptable risk to
the Australian authorities apprehending the boat
– such as when many illegal vessels are captured
at once. If this occurs all the fishing gear on
board is confiscated.
Mr Beazley's new policy seems
to advocate burning all such vessels at sea. Not
only would this pose a serious threat to the lives
of the Australian authorities, who would have
to undertake the task, it would also break the
international marine pollution protocol 'the London
Convention' to which Australia is a signatory.
This convention prevents the dumping of wastes
and other matter at sea.
The Howard Government's May
budget provided a massive $388.9 million to boost
the fight against illegal foreign fishing.
This included $65.9 million,
which will go towards the construction of new
boat-burning facilities as well as the upgrading
of the processing facility for foreign fishermen
in Broome, the establishment of facilities in
Gove (Nhulunbuy) and Weipa and modifications to
the facility in the Torres Strait. The additional
resources will also meet the costs associated
with the apprehension, transportation, processing
and accommodation of the several thousand extra
fishermen likely to be detained each year.
Combined with the $167 million
committed in 2005-06, this budget brings the Howard
Government's extra commitment to fighting illegal
fishing in Australia's northern waters to more
than half a billion dollars over the next four
years.
