Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / NT Seafood Council CEO Catherine Winchester says there was a lack of consultation on recent fishing laws changes, leaving operators facing uncertainty in the future

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NT Seafood Council CEO Catherine Winchester says there was a lack of consultation on recent fishing laws changes, leaving operators facing uncertainty in the future · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Well, the text line, the phone line, everything's going berserk
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: this morning. I'm going to get to all of those
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: messages very soon. Keep them coming. But you might recall
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: a little bit earlier this week, we spoke about the
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: Northern Territory Seafood Council calling on the withdrawal of the
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: Fisheries Legislation Amendment Bill for twenty twenty two, seeking genuine
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  Speaker 1: consultation on proposed changes to the Fisheries Act so that
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  Speaker 1: the current and future investments are not jeopardized. Now that
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: act actually passed throughout the week, or that bill, the
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  Speaker 1: Fisheries Legislation Amendment Bill, passed through the week. And joining
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  Speaker 1: me on the line right now is the CEO of
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  Speaker 1: the Northern Territory Seafood Council, Catherine Winchester. Good morning to you, Catherine.
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  Speaker 2: Good morning Katie.
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  Speaker 1: Catherine. You and I spoke, I think it was Wednesday
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  Speaker 1: or Tuesday this week, and the following day that bill passed.
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  Speaker 1: Watch your reaction to the passing of that bill.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, very disappointed. The reason why we asked for the
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  Speaker 2: bill to be withdrawn is because genuine consultation hadn't actually happened.
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  Speaker 2: And I guess what was more disappointing is in the
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  Speaker 2: second reading speech we heard from the Minister for Aboriginal
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  Speaker 2: Affairs and yesterday said again on radio, so this is
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  Speaker 2: a Fisheries Act, which is about management of the public
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  Speaker 2: resource for everyone. And the Minister said, we are negotiating
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  Speaker 2: with the landholders, which is the traditional owners through the
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  Speaker 2: Land Council. That who we're negotiating with on these changes.
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  Speaker 2: We're consulting with stakeholders like the Seafood Council, fan and
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  Speaker 2: the fishing tour guides. So the changes they made was
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  Speaker 2: far broader than the area affected by the Blue Mud
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  Speaker 2: Bay High Court decision. And the ministers basically said we're
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  Speaker 2: negotiating now just with one party and all those other
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  Speaker 2: parties will listen to your concerns. We raised genuine concerns,
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  Speaker 2: observations and questions which we still don't have confidence in
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  Speaker 2: the answers for. We just wanted to make sure we
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  Speaker 2: got it right, that the acknowledgment of the Blue Mud
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  Speaker 2: Bay High Court was done in a way that should
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  Speaker 2: not be threatening. We need to acknowledge those changes. We
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  Speaker 2: understand that that land is private and that the traditional
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  Speaker 2: owners determine who can come onto the land, but the
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  Speaker 2: changes that they put through were about the resource which
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  Speaker 2: is there for territorians to be managed under the Fisheries
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  Speaker 2: Acts for everyone, and they ran through these changes at
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  Speaker 2: the eleventh hour because they wanted to negotiate with one
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  Speaker 2: party and not have everyone sitting at the table to
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  Speaker 2: understand the changes that they were making.
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  Speaker 1: I don't understand why they wouldn't want everybody sitting at
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  Speaker 1: the table when you know, when surely that's what genuine
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  Speaker 1: consultation looks like.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, And it's really hard to listen and they go, oh,
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  Speaker 2: we consulted, and we've been talking about this for years.
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  Speaker 2: Maybe they have with a Land Council. We first got
• 3:00
  Speaker 2: a draft bill in the middle of May and it
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  Speaker 2: took the government three months to respond and we raise
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  Speaker 2: some very serious concerns and observations and this affects all
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  Speaker 2: of the waters of the territory, not just the intertidal waters,
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  Speaker 2: all waters all the way out to this drounding fishing zone.
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  Speaker 2: And it took three months to respond to those questions
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  Speaker 2: and concerns that we had and we advise we're still
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  Speaker 2: not comfortable, we still don't think you've got it right.
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  Speaker 2: But they went ahead and then just introduced it into
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  Speaker 2: Parliament and here the minister to say, everyone say, oh
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  Speaker 2: it should it's great, it's a great thing that's happened.
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  Speaker 2: We're really uncertain about what it all means. So yeah,
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  Speaker 2: for us looking forward, we just need to get everyone
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  Speaker 2: back around the table to actually unpack the language that's
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  Speaker 2: being used. What is trying to be achieved here, because
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  Speaker 2: this should not be a divisive or a one party
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  Speaker 2: needs are higher than anyone else's. This is the territory's
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  Speaker 2: aquatic resources that we're talking about, and everyone had an
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  Speaker 2: interest in them. Everyone wants them to be there for
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  Speaker 2: generations to come. We can't just say one person's view
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  Speaker 2: is more important than another's. We understand that the access
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  Speaker 2: is one hundred percent the traditional owner's decision. That we're
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  Speaker 2: talking about, the fish and all the little beefs that
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  Speaker 2: move around in and out of water that everyone loves,
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  Speaker 2: Everyone loves going fishing or just looking at them, and
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  Speaker 2: this is really make kid the waters.
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  Speaker 1: Catherine, What is this going to mean for the seafood
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  Speaker 1: industry in the Northern Territory.
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  Speaker 2: I don't know. I honestly don't know. And that's why
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  Speaker 2: we need to get around the table to really understand
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  Speaker 2: these changes. I mean I heard in the reading of
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  Speaker 2: the bill that it only acknowledges existing rights, there's no
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  Speaker 2: new rights. But it extends to all aquatic resources in
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  Speaker 2: all waters, and that's not what the Bluemo Bay High
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  Speaker 2: Court decision was about. So we need to get back
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  Speaker 2: to the table and understand it. Unfortunately, the changes have
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  Speaker 2: been made, but we've got to do our best to
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  Speaker 2: understand it. And we have to make sure that the
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  Speaker 2: fisheries actually which is to kick off early next year,
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  Speaker 2: is now with proper process and good consultation. And it
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  Speaker 2: cannot be done with a negotiation with one party and
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  Speaker 2: the other interested stakeholders and the public just to hear
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  Speaker 2: their comment, take that into account, but then go back
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  Speaker 2: and negotiate with one party. It's really poor process that
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  Speaker 2: the government has done here.
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  Speaker 1: Catherine. What are your members, your stakeholders signed to you
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  Speaker 1: today after these legislation's passed.
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  Speaker 2: Oh, shock, fear about the future. Even before it was passed,
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  Speaker 2: we had businesses putting investment decisions on hold. And these
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  Speaker 2: businesses and businesses who have been engaging with Indigenous communities
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  Speaker 2: and we're excited about brand new ventures here, opportunities for jobs,
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  Speaker 2: real jobs, workforce development, and they're just really uncertain about
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  Speaker 2: the future that it's going to be hard. If you
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  Speaker 2: don't know the rules, if you don't have certainty, how
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  Speaker 2: do you plan your investment, how do you plan your businesses?
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  Speaker 2: So we're all grappling with it. I don't have the answers.
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  Speaker 2: I can't tell people what it means because I don't
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  Speaker 2: understand what it means. So for us, the first priority
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  Speaker 2: once everyone's cooled down over Christmas, is to get back
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  Speaker 2: to the table and just really figure out what do
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  Speaker 2: these changes mean and how do we make sure that
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  Speaker 2: that full review of the fishery, that which is managing
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  Speaker 2: this resource for everyone who's done properly.
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  Speaker 1: Katrum, what is your message for this morning for the government.
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  Speaker 2: Let's make sure we get the process for the full
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  Speaker 2: fisheries that review correct and make sure that everyone say
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  Speaker 2: on the full at of the fisheries view is taken
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  Speaker 2: into account equally. We understand that there is a land owner,
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  Speaker 2: it's private land and access is one part, but the
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  Speaker 2: management of the fishery that from those resources is for
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  Speaker 2: all territories and we need to make sure every territorian
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  Speaker 2: has a fair safe.
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  Speaker 1: Kat from Winchester, the CEO of the Northern Territory Seafood Council.
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  Speaker 1: I appreciate your time this morning. Thanks so much for
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: having a chat with us K. Thank you