Ms O’CONNOR – Thank you. Minister, is there data available on poaching instances, interdictions by Tasmania Police for abalone poaching and the like?
Mr ELLIS – Maybe rock lobster as well in terms of marine, that sort of stuff.
Ms O’CONNOR – Rock lobster, just to have a –
Mr ELLIS – Yes.
Ms O’CONNOR – I mean, the sort of work, obviously, that fisheries security is doing.
Mr ELLIS – Yes.
Ms O’CONNOR – I’m just wondering what the on-water crime rates are like.
Mr ELLIS – So I think we mentioned the marine offenders before in terms of 1176 actual this last financial year. I don’t know if there’s any further update.
Mr BODNAR – All we could say there – through you, minister – Ms O’Connor, is that that covers a raft of fisheries offences. We’d have to go back through some of the statistics to see if we could sort of hone it down as to how many offenders were charged for, say, rock lobster offences, abalone offences, marine and safety offences, things of that nature. It covers the whole gambit.
But certainly we have a strong engagement with our fishery peak bodies, particularly with some of the changes that came in recently around the way that some of the fisheries were regulated including rock lobster and, yes, Tasmania Police work closely with them.
Ms O’CONNOR – Has Tasmania Police marine division been called out to investigate any cases of animal cruelty associated with industrial fish farm operations? The shooting of seals and the like, which we know happens.
Mr BLACKWOOD – We would need to take that one on notice, but not that we are aware of.
Ms O’CONNOR – I might do that. Is that not part of the marine division’s area of responsibility?
Mr ELLIS – I’m happy to take it on notice. Obviously we would have to be talking about an offence.
Ms O’CONNOR – How much of the time and resourcing of the marine division is allocated towards security around industrial fish farms? Is that a particular focus?
Mr BLACKWOOD – No, it is not a particular focus. The dedicated marine staff will undertake regular patrols. But in particular, when they are doing those patrols, also focusing on compliance activities with commercial fishermen as well. There aren’t dedicated patrols for supplying security to fish farms.
Ms O’CONNOR – Well, that’s good. I was out in Storm Bay not long back and we had a dedicated patrol stop by and make sure that we were compliant and I am glad to report we were. So, there is more –
Mr ELLIS – We will take your word for it, Ms O’Connor.
Ms O’CONNOR – We definitely were, otherwise you probably would have read about it. Because there was a senator and an MP –
Mr ELLIS – ‘Don’t you know who I am’?
Ms O’CONNOR – No. There was a senator, an MP and a judge on the boat, so I am very glad we were.
CHAIR – That’s a fix.
Ms O’CONNOR – I’m very glad we were compliant.
Mr ELLIS – Did you walk into a bar later?
Ms O’CONNOR – So would it be fair to say that the marine security division’s work is more around rec fishers’ compliance and boat users’ compliance, and then there is some work that is undertaken on commercial fisheries, but that would be more around abalone, for example, and rock lobster rather than the squid fishery and the big boats that are out?
Mr BLACKWOOD – Yes, for sure. During the rock lobster season, we make sure that we are regularly out there and we’re checking vessels and we’re boarding vessels to check their catch. But there are also regional marine police who would do that more, the checking of vessels, and we have got a safety role there to play as well.
Ms O’CONNOR – Okay, yes.
Mr ELLIS – Encouraging anyone if they have got concerns around an offence, that applies to marine as well. So always able to report through Tasmania Police.
Ms O’CONNOR – Can I ask if we’ve got any –
Ms ARMITAGE – Is that –
Ms O’CONNOR – Sorry?
Ms ARMITAGE – I’ve got a supplementary on the –
Ms O’CONNOR – Yes, okay. I wouldn’t mind finishing my line of questioning, thanks, member for Launceston. Can I ask if we are seeing any trends in rock lobster offences or poaching or overtake? Or is there, from what we understand, a general level of compliance as far as we can tell?
Mr BLACKWOOD – From what we can tell, a general level of compliance. I actually had the pleasure of going down to Port Davey with one of the vessels late last year. Every vessel that we went past was checked, and all bar one was compliant, except for one cray that was undersize by about two millimetres. So generally, we are seeing really good compliance.
Ms O’CONNOR – Last question, flathead. Is there a role for the Marine Division in checking the catches there, given the decline in the fishery?
Mr BLACKWOOD – There certainly is, and marine police in connection with NRE, particularly when the rules change around flathead took a really high visible approach, particularly around jetties when boats were coming ashore, from an educative point of view as well, around flatheads.
Ms O’CONNOR – That work is still continuing, through you, minister?
Mr BLACKWOOD – Yes, through the minister, it is.
Ms O’CONNOR – Okay. Do you think there is a broad level of community understanding about the changes to the flathead fishery and the need to make sure there is fish for the future?
Mr ELLIS – We have spoken around that broad compliance and continuing to educate people around our fisheries is standard business across government, but yes.
Mr BLACKWOOD – Yes. Through you, minister, I would agree.
Ms O’CONNOR – Thank you.
