NATIVE VEGETATION CLEARANCE HABITAT LOSS AND BIO-DIVERSITY DECLINE
MINISTER BOWS TO INTIMIDATION FROM DUCK SHOOTERS
Animal welfare and wildlife conservation groups were reeling today in response to news that Minister Llewellyn has rejected their calls to abandon plans to have a duck shooting season in 2008.
"Minister Llewllyn would appear to have been politically intimidated by Tasmanian shooters into acceding to their demands despite scientific advice, despite advice from his own officials, despite decisions to abandon the season in other States - and despite widespread community concern in Tasmania," said Chris Simcox from Australians Against Animal Cruelty Tasmania. "How else are we to explain such an extraordinarily weak decision?"
"It's time that Minister Llewellyn found the moral and intellectual courage to stand up to the bullying by the shooters and declare the State drought affected for ducks in exactly the same way as he has support drought declaration for landholders," said Alistair Graham from the Tasmanian Conservation Trust. "It is obviously ridiculous that farmers can succeed in their claims that their sheep are in trouble yet those worried about ducks can be ignored
David Llewellyn is a Labor representative in the electorate of Lyons . He currently holds the office of Minister for Primary Industries he advocates recreational duck shooting (our native birds)
Its time to call for an inquiry into how the decision was made to allow a Tasmanian 2008 Duck killing season to go ahead.
And it's also time to call for the Federal Government (Peter Garrett) to take over the responsibility for native water birds in Tasmania.
The Tasmanian Government is really not fit to make decisions relating to native water birds, especially in times of climate change.
