Dr WASHER (3:00 PM) —My question is addressed to the Minister for Forestry and Conservation. Has the minister seen recent reports on different views on logging in old-growth forests in Western Australia? What is the minister's response to these reports?

Mr TUCKEY (Minister for Forestry and Conservation and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister) —On 4 May 1999, the Commonwealth government concluded a regional forest agreement under the principles of the 1992 National Forest Policy Statement on scientific assessment and CALM reserve systems which, among other things, had the approval in terms of sustainable yields to retain and maintain jobs for workers in the Western Australian Environmental Protection Agency. Later, some reductions were made by the Court government, but I was able to identify where federal funding would maintain a process of no net jobs losses. Two announcements were imminent: building a brand new furniture factory in Manjimup based on resource from the Manjimup mill and a purchase agreement for the Nannup mill with a group of people who were prepared to not only keep the Nannup mill open but also expand its activities. Otherwise, the Nannup mill would have been closed with significant job losses. I had been awaiting final agreement on guarantees of a wood resource over an acceptable period from the Court state government to make sure that people's jobs were protected.

Recently, the Gallop Labor opposition in Western Australia released their forest policy. They propose, over and above the circumstances scientifically assessed, of which I have advised the House, to take another 340,500 hectares of resource out of an area of 346,000 hectares. They say in their document that they are going to try to sustain the industry on 5,000 hectares of forest. If that were even possible, you can imagine the destruction that would occur. Talk about clear-fell! They would have to dig up the roots of the trees to have enough wood.

As a consequence, some interesting remarks have been made. Firstly, Mr Bob Pearce, a Labor state minister under the Burke, Dowding and Lawrence governments and, to the best of my recollection, the environment minister under the Lawrence government, has been highly critical of these statements. He was quoted in the media as saying that this initiative will cost 737 direct jobs. He says nothing about the tyre replacer and nothing about the small business Retravision operator. He goes on to say that it will cost the state $84 million in revenue from royalties. I bet that is not in Dr Gallop's financial statement, which he got some mate over here to say is feasible. Furthermore, Pearce is also saying that even existing contracts—signed, sealed and delivered crown contracts—could not be honoured under this arrangement. Mr Tim Daly, president of the Western Australian AWU and an ALP state executive member, has also criticised this and was quoted in the West Australian on 23 January 2001 as follows:

Geoff Gallop—

Both Pearce and Daly directed timber workers at a public meeting reported in the newspaper article I just mentioned to vote against the Labor Party and to make sure that they got defeated. That message has to get through to the regional town of Bunbury. There are not too many sawmills in Bunbury, but I have visited the factories that rebuild the tractors and the bulldozers. I have visited the tyre sellers who have a huge business based on the timber industry, the people who service trucks, many of whom are in Bunbury and then, of course, there is that highly environmentally friendly Sincoa plant which makes silicon from jarrah charcoal and, one might wonder, even from the scraps. Where might they be able to continue their business which employs 123 residents of Bunbury?

It goes further than that. We find that a one-time senator of this parliament and a one-time national secretary of the Labor Party are going to vote for a Liberal in this electorate—that was by personal advice to me. They are so fed up to think that they were members of a party which no longer puts workers first. Daly also said that Labor had abandoned grassroots workers for the chardonnay set. The only interest that Gallop has in forest industry products is a few ballot papers. I am pleased to hear the Leader of the Opposition say, `This will get us a few votes.' The Labor Party is prepared to drive their own constituency into the ground. The member for McMillan will not ever come to me. Nobody does. The shadow minister has not complained to me about these job losses. The Labor Party does not care. Jobs can be sacrificed any time for a few preferences.