The opportunity for a sensible, commercial fishing policy based on science and consultation rather than spin was lost yesterday, according to the Queensland Seafood Industry Association.
An LNP disallowance motion on fisheries regulations brought in at the start of September was lost on party lines in parliament after debate, sparking contradictory claims by the government and the opposition.
Agriculture Minister Mark Furner said the motion's effect would have been to invalidate the licences of every commercial and charter fishing operator in Queensland.
He described it as reckless and with the potential to risk thousands of jobs.
"This is not an exaggeration. The regulations that the LNP would disallow are the very ones that allow licences to be issued to commercial fishers.
"If these were disallowed, every commercial and charter fisher in Queensland would lose their legal authority to catch, process or sell fish."
Opposition agriculture spokesman Tony Perrett said this was pure scaremongering on Mr Furner's part.
"It wouldn't have been a legislative change - the regulations are just about how an Act is put in force.
"Yesterday's motion was the only opportunity for us to raise awareness of the issues surrounding these regulations on behalf of the commercial fishermen they'll be impacting."
In direct contrast to each other, Mr Furner said more than 1300 commercial fishers and 350 charter business operators would have been unable to earn a living if the motion had gone through, while opposition leader Deb Frecklington said the government's new regulations will now cost jobs in the seafood industry.
According to Mr Perrett, recreational fishers face a reduction in the total take of mud crabs, new limits for blue swimmer crabs and a decrease in the possession limit for pippis, which he said weren't backed by sciencific evidence.
"There has been no regulatory impact statement done - if the minister were genuine he would do that," he said.
"If he wants to push people out of the industry by stealth, by quota changes, he must come up with a compensation package for them."
The effect of the legislation on the livelihoods of Queensland fishing families has been emphasised by the Queensland Seafood Industries Association, representing commercial fishing organisations from Moreton Bay to the Gulf of Carpentaria, and it reacted angrily to yesterday's result.
"Our fisheries are not in danger and the continued rhetoric that the cutbacks are about preserving them for the future is nonsense," president Keith Harris said.
"This shambolic government has made its position clear - it does not value wild-caught commercial fisheries and, because environmental activists have more influence over the Labor government than primary producers do, and especially seafood producers, it is prepared to regulate them out of existence."
He said the reform process showed the government had no clue when it came to food production, and no clue about the job-generating capacity of food producers and the importance of food production to the regions and coast.
"Queenslanders love their local seafood and I ask that seafood consumers to continue to support this great industry.
"If you have concerns about less choice and the potential for higher prices for seafood we harvest on your behalf, the problem starts and ends in George Street," Mr Harris said.
According to the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries website, further regulatory changes could be considered before the end of the year, expected to be more rules around quota allocations, which are technically not in operation yet.
Sally Gall
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
