PETITIONS Thursday, 8 October 1998 ASSEMBLY 401 Thursday, 8 October 1998 We oppose partial birth abortion under any circwnstances. The SPEAKER (Hon. S. J. Plowman) took the chair at We believe that l~terrn, partial birth abortion is 10.03 a.m. and read the prayer. morally and ethically wrong. We seek amendments to the Crimes Act which will PETITIONS prevent partial birth tenninations. Your petitioners therefore pray that Section 10 of the Crimes The Oerk - I have received the following petitions Act be amended accordingly to disallow the practice of late for presentation to Parliament: tenD partial birth abortions in Victoria Point King Beach, Portsea And your petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray. To the Honourable the Speaker and members of the By Mr SAV AGE (Mildura) (93 signatures) Legislative Assembly in Parliament assembled: Laid on table. The humble petition of the undersigned citizens of the state of Victoria sheweth that a public nuisance is being committed on Ordered that petition presented by honourable member Point King Beach, Portsea, by certain adjoining landowners for Gippsland West be considered next day on motion of erecting fencing designed and intended to enclose a Ms DAVIES (Gippsland West). substantial, previously unenclosed area of the beach near its western end (the area in question) and to exclude or obstruct Ordered that petition presented by honourable member members of the public from freely exercising their rights to for Mildura be considered next day on motion of walk through and use and enjoy the area in question. being Mr SAV AGE (Mildura). rights which members of the public have acquired at common law (by virtue of public exercise without let or hindrance over a period of more than 60 years) and which have been confirmed by stanlte (section lS(d) and (e) of the Validation PAPER ofTitles Act 1994). Laid on table by Oerk: Your petitioners therefore pray that you will take all necessary and appropriate steps to ensure the removal of the Statutory Rule under the Marine Act 1988 - S.R. No. 122. said public nuisa.nce, and to preserve and protect the public's rights to walk through and use and enjoy the area in question without let or hindrance. BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE And your petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray. Adjournment By Mr DIXON (Dromana) (745 signatures) Mr GUDE (Minister for Education) - By leave, I Strzelecki State Forest move: To the Honourable the Speaker and members of the That the house, at its rising, adjourn until Tuesday, Legislative Assembly in Parliament assembled: 20 October. We, the undersigned citizens, have great concerns about the Motion agreed to. corporatisation and pending privatisation of the native forests of the Strzelecki State Forest. This last large public tract of the great forest of Gippsland deserves a high degree of protection. CONSERVATION, FORESTS AND LANDS Your petitioners therefore pray that the state govenunent implement the establishment of a 30 000 hectare national park (MISCELLANEOUS AMENDMENTS) BILL in the Strzelecki State Forest, as outlined in the proposal produced by Devenish, Constable and Standering. Opposition amendments circulated by Ms GARBurr (Bundoora) pursuant to sessional orders. And your petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray. Second reading By Ms DA VIES (Gippsland West) (5401 signatures) Debate resumed from 3 September; motion of Late-term abortions Mrs TEHAN (Minister for Conservation and Land Management). To the Honourable the Speaker and members of the Legislative Assembly in Parliament assembled: Ms GARBUTT (Bundoora) - The opposition has The humble petition of the undersigned citizens of the state of mixed feelings about the bill because it has two Victoria sheweth that: separate sections with quite different and unrelated purposes. The first section amends a total of 29 acts to CONSERVATION, FORESTS AND LANDS (MISCELLANEOUS AMENDMEI''TS) BILL 402 ASSEMBLY Thursday, 8 October 1998 ensure that they are up to date in correctly referring to responsible for conservation in Victoria she will be the Secretary to the Department of Natural Resources recorded in history as the minister responsible for and Environment. It also brings the Public Sector commercialisation! An appropriate description of the Management and Employment Act in line with those Minister for Conservation and Land Management was references. contained in the letters column in the Age when the question was asked about the minister, 'She is called When reading the references contained in the bill it is what?'. The answer was, 'She is the minister for interesting to note the various acts it amends, because it conservation'. The readers would have fallen about lists a full range of the acts for which the Minister for laughing. A few pithy sentences summarised the Conservation and Land Management is responsible and minister well: a conservation minister who does not about which she has made bungles and mistakes. On conserve. many such occasions the minister has not taken the advice of her department but has made controversial What has she done to national parks recently? She decisions which threaten the environment. extended cattle grazing licences in the Alpine National Park. Earlier she had undertaken a process of sorts Clause 10 amends sections of the Forests Act and when she asked for a report on the effects of grazing in inserts a new section. One of the amended sections is national parks during the past seven years. The the very section under which the minister recently independent report by the CSIRO said that an issued regulations relating to forests. In June when she enormous amount of damage had been done and that published the regulations in the Government Gazette grazing should be stopped - that grazing went against she exempted herself from seeking a regulatory impact the values of national parks and was harming statement and had to issue a separate certificate of conservation efforts. The report from the CSIRO could exemption. The bill amends the very section under not have been much clearer. which the secretive regulations were rushed through. Those regulations are causing controversy and Did the minister take that CSIRO advice? No! While confrontation in our forests to the extent that this the researchers were out in the national parks weekend a demonstration is being held against them. conducting research, the Premier was telling the cattlemen's representatives that everything would be all I have an invitation that just arrived on my desk from right; that the association members should have the Otway Ranges Environment Network. It states confidence. As reported in the Alpine Observer, he said, about the regulations under the Forests Act: 'One of your members is a member of Parliament; we will look after you'. The process was never intended to Big brother DNRE forestry will now dictate who can and cannot have pennits to enter state forest and scrutinise produce any other outcome than what has now clear-fell logging operations. occurred. An independent report to the government reported that the price of grazing licences should be The regulations that the minister issued under the increased to $23 per head. But what happened? The Forests Act that the bill amends require people to get a licence cost stayed at less than $10 - nowhere near the permit to enter state forests - that is, public land! The amount recommended. The minister did not take the invitation from the network states further: advice. The public liberty to freely enter state forests and protest The second decision taken by the Minister for against destructive clear-fell logging of native forests has been removed. Conservation and Land Management for the Alpine National Park was to excise Mount McKay. The The minister now introduces a jackboot regulation minister was advised by her departmental officers that without paying any regard to civil liberties. Not only the land should not be excised. has the minister bungled and failed but she takes no notice of advice offered. The community now Mrs Tehan intetjected. recognises her attacks on people's civil liberties. The opposition has moved in this house to repeal those Ms GARBUTT - Ifthe minister looks at the regulations. second-reading speech she will see that that had all been SEC land The minister forgot to mention that the Clause 14 amends the National Parks Act. What a area has been a national park since 1983. miserable record the minister has with national parks! Her record of destruction shows that she has put Mrs Tehan intetjected commercial interests ahead of conservation. The Ms GARBUTT - It had been national park. The minister's record will haunt her. As the minister minister seems to forget crucial facts at crucial times; CONSERVATION, FORESTS AND LM'DS (MISCELLANEOUS AMENDMENTS) Bll..L Thursday, 8 October 1998 ASSEMBLY 403 she forgets many things. Mount McKay has been Ms GARBUTT - Another black mark among excised from the national park and handed to a ski many! The provision in the bill that changes the Crown resort company which has announced plans to build Land (Reserves) Act refers to committees of accommodation and ski runs on the mountain. I am management of Crown land I will leave it to other sure the company that runs that resort would operate the opposition members to talk about the appalling uses of facilities properly, but the government should not have Crown land for the proposed Werribee toxic dump, for taken that action. It has literally wiped out a piece of example. That is but one part of an appalling history of national park. supposedly implemented conservation measures that one could not put on one's record as a conservation Mrs Tehan intetjected minister. Ms GARBUTT - The National Parks Act says The Environment Protection Authority had a policy on they should be reserved in perpetuity for conservation, prescribed waste: it adopted a direct and responsible yet the minister has taken a slice out and given it away.