New Marine Parks not on Coalition AgendaFriday, July 23, 2010 The Victorian Liberal Nationals Coalition does not support the proposal for the creation of an additional twenty new marine national parks in Victoria, Shadow Minister for Environment and Climate Change, Mary Wooldridge said today. Ms Wooldridge said a Coalition Government would instead focus on addressing Labor’s neglect of Victoria’s existing marine national parks and sanctuaries. “The Victorian Liberal Nationals Coalition does not propose to expand Victoria’s marine parks during the first term of government,” Ms Wooldridge said. “Our priority will be on resolving the environmental problems Labor has created through its failure to adequately manage the state’s existing marine parks. “Victoria’s marine parks are a valuable asset in the protection of our diverse marine and coastal habitat. However, under Labor, they have been plagued by disease and illegal fishing. “When the Labor Government created these marine parks, it promised to fund an extra 26 fisheries officers to ensure they were properly managed,” Ms Wooldridge said. However, the number of fisheries officers has declined during Labor’s time in government and Victoria now has 14 fewer fisheries officers than it did six years ago. In addition, the Brumby Government’s failure to control the spread of disease is decimating marine parks and fishing activities. “Labor’s contempt for monitoring environmental outcomes is also evident in its decision to strip the budget papers of measures outlining the government’s performance on marine parks,” Ms Wooldridge said. “The Brumby Government has failed to manage or effectively protect Victoria’s marine environment, and rectifying this failure will be the focus of a Coalition Government.”
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