Mr AH KIT - 1996-08-22
Recreational anglers are very concerned about reports that the Country Liberal Party government is in the process of approving large horticultural projects in the Mary River catchment area and in the Douglas/Daly region. Anglers are concerned that large-scale, unplanned development in these 2 areas may have an adverse impact on the quality of recreational fishing stocks. Will the minister assure the Assembly that the necessary environmental impact studies will be carried out properly before any development is begun and that amateur fishermen will be consulted?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, if recreational fishermen are concerned about anything it is the member for Arnhem and his support for claims over sea rights and the denial of access to waters that they currently access.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr REED: That is what recreational fishermen are concerned about. I can tell you ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: You have an interjection scorecard now. You made 9 interjections yesterday while I was attempting to answer a question.
Mrs Hickey: You are disgraceful.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
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Mr REED: There were 9 interjections from the member for Wanguri. Could the Leader of the Opposition please control him, to enable people listening to ...
Mr Bailey: You are the ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: The fact is that this government has done more to promote recreational fishing and more to ensure that there are good fish stocks than any other government in the country. The member for Arnhem and others opposite are latecomers to this debate. They were not here when the opposition was opposing the programs that this government was undertaking to improve recreational fishing in the Northern Territory. These programs were aimed at increasing barramundi stocks and identifying waters for recreational fishing. Those programs were opposed by members opposite. Recreational fishermen remember that, and recognise the progress that this government has made with its initiatives to improve recreational fishing. The most recent is a $1m program over 3 years to provide dedicated access for recreational fishermen ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: There is another interjection from the member for Wanguri. He is trying to improve his handicap - not his mental handicap but his interjecting handicap.
Mr Speaker, it is a proud record. Extending beyond the initiatives that this government has put in place for recreational fishermen are our concerns for the environment. We have in place the Wetlands Task Force. At its meeting today, that task force will be considering the matters raised by the member for Arnhem. If he were up with what is occurring in the Northern Territory, he would know that. In Question Time yesterday, I advised the honourable member that the task force is meeting today to consider the very sorts of issues that he has raised. If he listened to the answers that are provided by ministers to questions asked ...
Mr Ah Kit interjecting.
Mr REED: I know it is hard when you have a Leader of the Opposition who cannot control her members and they keep interjecting.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr REED: There he goes again! We have another indication of the inability of the Leader of the Opposition to control the members opposite. I do not know what she will do after today. The only steadying influence over there, the member for Stuart, is leaving today. He is the only one who has ever had any steadying influence on them. The current Leader of the Opposition is incompetent and totally incapable of controlling her troops. If she had any control, members who asked questions would be able to hear the answers.
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If the member for Arnhem had listened more intently to the answers, such as the one I gave him yesterday about the Wetlands Task Force and what we are doing in the Mary River area with the construction of barriers to prevent saltwater intrusion, and on other environmental issues in that area, he would be informed. He has only to listen.
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ANSWER
Mr Speaker, if recreational fishermen are concerned about anything it is the member for Arnhem and his support for claims over sea rights and the denial of access to waters that they currently access.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr REED: That is what recreational fishermen are concerned about. I can tell you ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: You have an interjection scorecard now. You made 9 interjections yesterday while I was attempting to answer a question.
Mrs Hickey: You are disgraceful.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Page 1544
Mr REED: There were 9 interjections from the member for Wanguri. Could the Leader of the Opposition please control him, to enable people listening to ...
Mr Bailey: You are the ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: The fact is that this government has done more to promote recreational fishing and more to ensure that there are good fish stocks than any other government in the country. The member for Arnhem and others opposite are latecomers to this debate. They were not here when the opposition was opposing the programs that this government was undertaking to improve recreational fishing in the Northern Territory. These programs were aimed at increasing barramundi stocks and identifying waters for recreational fishing. Those programs were opposed by members opposite. Recreational fishermen remember that, and recognise the progress that this government has made with its initiatives to improve recreational fishing. The most recent is a $1m program over 3 years to provide dedicated access for recreational fishermen ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: There is another interjection from the member for Wanguri. He is trying to improve his handicap - not his mental handicap but his interjecting handicap.
Mr Speaker, it is a proud record. Extending beyond the initiatives that this government has put in place for recreational fishermen are our concerns for the environment. We have in place the Wetlands Task Force. At its meeting today, that task force will be considering the matters raised by the member for Arnhem. If he were up with what is occurring in the Northern Territory, he would know that. In Question Time yesterday, I advised the honourable member that the task force is meeting today to consider the very sorts of issues that he has raised. If he listened to the answers that are provided by ministers to questions asked ...
Mr Ah Kit interjecting.
Mr REED: I know it is hard when you have a Leader of the Opposition who cannot control her members and they keep interjecting.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr REED: There he goes again! We have another indication of the inability of the Leader of the Opposition to control the members opposite. I do not know what she will do after today. The only steadying influence over there, the member for Stuart, is leaving today. He is the only one who has ever had any steadying influence on them. The current Leader of the Opposition is incompetent and totally incapable of controlling her troops. If she had any control, members who asked questions would be able to hear the answers.
Page 1545
If the member for Arnhem had listened more intently to the answers, such as the one I gave him yesterday about the Wetlands Task Force and what we are doing in the Mary River area with the construction of barriers to prevent saltwater intrusion, and on other environmental issues in that area, he would be informed. He has only to listen.
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Last updated: 09 Aug 2016