The Invasive Species Council has welcomed the appointment of Senator Murray Watt as Minister for the Environment and Julie Collins as Minister for Agriculture, urging the Albanese Government to build on the momentum of the last term and deliver bold, practical action on invasive species.
‘The return of the Albanese Government with a strong majority presents a real opportunity to scale up practical, job-rich programs that protect our unique wildlife and rural communities,’ Invasive Species Council CEO Jack Gough said.
‘We congratulate Senator Murray Watt on his appointment as Federal Minister for the Environment. In his previous role as Agriculture Minister, he was instrumental in securing federal fire ant eradication funding and growing the funding for biosecurity.
‘We look forward to continuing to work with Minister Watt in this new role. His understanding of the environmental biosecurity challenge will be invaluable in confronting the wildlife crisis.
‘We also welcome the reappointment of Julie Collins as Federal Minister for Agriculture. She has played a key role in securing crucial bird flu preparedness funding for wildlife and in supporting national coordination roles to manage feral deer, pigs, foxes and cats.
‘The collaboration between the agriculture and environment portfolios is essential. Invasive species don’t respect portfolio boundaries, and neither can the solutions. This is a chance to lift the nation’s focus on environmental biosecurity and deliver smart, well funded programs with big impacts.
‘We also thank Minister Plibersek for the progress she made in the last term as Environment Minister. Minister Plibersek set a bold ambition to stop extinctions, secured state support for national strategies for feral cats, weeds and deer, funded bird flu preparedness for wildlife, stood up for action on feral horses in Kosciuszko National Park and supported local control efforts. Those were important wins that we now need to scale.
‘Australians expect urgent action – not just plans on paper, but boots-on-the-ground investment in proven programs like fire ant containment, feral cat control and invasive weed management.
‘We’re ready to work constructively with the new Cabinet, the crossbench and the Opposition to deliver a national plan that meets the scale of the problem and delivers for Australia’s unique wildlife, environment, farmers and communities.’
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