Wellington Shire Council Mayor, Ian Bye, has slammed Victorian Premier, Daniel Andrews, claiming he has devastated the futures of more than 650 timber workers throughout Wellington Shire with his announcement to end native timber harvesting in the state.
He said the decision marked the final nail in the coffin for the state’s native timber industry – “one that feeds the families of hundreds of local timber workers”.
“Devastation was felt instantly yesterday, after months living in fear of the worst possible outcome. An outcome that has turned into a nightmare for timber workers local to Wellington Shire,” the Mayor said.
“The Premier’s announcement to end native timber harvesting in Victoria in 2024 is a kick in the guts for timber communities, putting on full display the Premier’s disregard for local people and a preference for policy and voters in inner Melbourne.”
He said the Budget 2023 announcement follows years of advocacy from Council, including three years of formal Freedom of Information requests for the State Government to produce the scientific evidence they claimed underpinned their decision to shut down the timber industry.
“After three long years of being ignored and refused any proof or explanation, this announcement comes as complete shock and heartbreak to so many in our community,” said Mayor Bye.
“I am still yet to receive any evidence that the Premier based his decision to phase out native timber harvesting by 2030 on any facts, even after Council made its first request for this information in 2020. While we never supported the State Government’s decision to phase out timber harvesting by 2030, at least this timeframe allowed our industries time to adjust. Breaking this promise and ending it now shows a complete lack of transparency and honesty.”
He said the Council, along with major timber industries and stakeholders, had only learned of the decision yesterday following media reports.
“Victoria’s government simply has a strong aversion to any sort of consultation with regional communities. I share in our community’s disappointment. Those whose lives will be so profoundly impacted by this decision to not be included in any conversation or consultation, and to find out by watching the news or listening to the radio shows an utter lack of integrity or respect. And to the Premier who hid this announcement in the overall budget blitz, it is a very telling sign.”
“In three years, we haven’t seen any evidence or sign that the Premier ever had plans to deliver on his promises to support the native timber industry with new pine plantations or any form of alternative supply. Now the livelihoods of hundreds of locals are shattered in an instant without a single word from the Premier or his government.
“I implore the Premier to consider the future of our communities. Local workers can’t be expected to survive this blow following extensive drought, bushfires, and a global pandemic. The Premier continues to tout transition assistance, but to this point not a single ongoing job has been created in Wellington,” he said.
The Mayor said Budget Day 2023 would be remembered as “a dark day” for the Wellington Shire community.
In a Budget 2023 statement, Premier Andrews said the State Government would provide an additional $200 million in support for workers and their families to transition away from native timber logging earlier than planned – by 1 January 2024.
“In 2019, the Government moved to secure a long-term and sustainable future for Victoria’s forestry industry – and for the Victorian workers and communities who rely on it,” the Premier said.
“Native timber harvesting in state forests will end in 2024 – with existing supports being brought forward and scaled up – which will mean every single timber worker will be directly supported to find a new job.”
He said forest contractor workers will be secured with contracts for forest management works, enabling them to continue to work in the forests they know well and contribute to bushfire risk reduction.
“The Government’s Free TAFE program will retrain workers, helping them get jobs in growing regional industries like construction, agriculture, transport, and manufacturing through TAFE Gippsland and other key TAFE campuses in timber communities. This will be supported by up to $8,000 in retraining vouchers for courses inside and outside the TAFE Network.”
“We’ll continue to back workers and their families with financial and mental health support, by connecting them to specialist mental health service providers in their local area and covering out-of-pocket costs. Industry support payments will also continue as needed until the transition is finalised.
“We’re being upfront with the industry – and continuing to deliver a managed transition to support every worker and every business. Because we’ll never leave them to go it alone,”
the Victorian Premier promised.
As part of the transition away from harvesting, the Government will be required to deliver a program of land management works to manage the 1.8 million hectares of public land currently subject to the timber harvesting allocation order.
“This will see us deliver the largest expansion to our public forests in our state’s history,” said Mr Andrews.
He said the Government will establish an advisory panel to consider and make recommendations to Government on the areas of Victorian forests that qualify for protection as National Parks – areas suitable for recreation opportunities – and opportunities for management of public land by Traditional Owners.
