Media Release

Peter Gutwein MP
Shadow Minister for Forestry

Thursday 1st September, 2011

Leg Co revelations: Secret Gillard-Giddings-McKim phone hook-up decided future of forest industry

It’s been revealed that the future of Tasmania’s forest industry, and thousands of jobs, was decided during a secret telephone hook-up between Julia Gillard, Lara Giddings and Greens Leader Nick McKim, on the afternoon of Friday, 5th August.

The revelations were made in Legislative Council question time today by the Leader of the Government, Doug Parkinson, in response to a question from Liberal Dr Vanessa Goodwin.

It shows just the depth of influence the Greens hold over Labor when Nick McKim can demand a private three-way conversation with the Premier and Prime Minister to discuss forestry, during which the Labor leaders bow to his demands and trash thousands of jobs and dozens of rural communities just to keep him happy.

This conversation ultimately saw significant final changes to the deal, resulting in it being very different from – and much more damaging than - the supposed final deal shown to industry representatives the previous day.

It’s telling that Ms Giddings failed to provide this detail to the House when asked earlier this week if any such meetings occurred.

It was also revealed in Legislative Council Question Time today that Forestry Tasmania provided written advice in the form of a Ministerial briefing note to the Government on Thursday, 4th August – before the disastrous forest deal was signed - which confirmed that it was not possible to lock-up 430,000 hectares of forest and still provide the supposed “guaranteed” timber quantities.

It is a disgrace that Ms Giddings wilfully ignored this advice and locked up the 430,000 hectares anyway, relying instead on the flimsy 4-page advice of Jonathan West.

This revelation is also at odds with Minister Green’s assertion to Parliament on Tuesday that the Forestry Tasmania advice wasn’t provided until after the deal had been signed.*

* ”We accept that following this report [the West report] Forestry Tasmania has come forward with other information to say it is concerned about the ability to supply industry…” (Bryan Green, Hansard, 30th August 2011).