Media Release

KAP Federal Member for Kennedy Bob Katter has presented a petition to the Federal Government that demonstrates the increasing public angst over everyday Australians being banned from fishing because of successive governments’ obsession with pandering to the “green monster”.

Just one week after joining protesters in Canberra to rally against further closures our northern waters, Mr Katter yesterday met with Environment Minister Tony Burke to deliver the heart-felt plea for the government to allow hard-working Aussies to indulge in one of our nation’s favourite pastimes – the simple act of wetting a line with our mates and children.

“It took just three days and next to no effort for one of my North Qld constituents to collect almost 300 signatures from people who have had a gutful of being banned from going fishing – and not just locals, but holiday-makers who come up north for that fishing trip of a lifetime,” said Mr Katter.

“But this groundswell of anger has been a long time coming. It’s been one of the key complaints to my offices since the previous LNP federal government passed laws to increase ‘no take’ zones on the Barrier Reef from about 4.5 percent to 33.3 percent.

“This made the Reef the world's largest marine protected area – ruining the livelihoods of commercial fishers and leaving recreational fishers with criminal convictions because they’d wander past some arbitrary boundary in the ocean.

"Now we have the Federal Labor Government making Australia’s waters the biggest marine reserve in the world without a skerrick of scientific basis, because despite being surrounded by what is arguably the greatest and most sustainable food production resource in the world, we have the world’s lowest harvest rate.

“Even worse, we are a net importer of seafood – which in some instances is farmed in raw sewerage.

“So while we shut down our fishing grounds and put increased pressure on dwindling overseas fisheries, make no mistake: the eyes of a hungry world will eventually come to rest on Australian waters.

“With an estimated 80 million people from our nearest neighbour going to bed hungry every night, try explaining to Indonesia why our selfish governments won’t let us help feed the world and won’t let anyone else near our abundant oceans, because the green monster dictates it.”