Mr PETER DRAPER (Tamworth) [12.59 a.m.]: I strongly oppose the Brigalow and Nandewar Community Conservation Area Bill because of the detrimental effect it will have on many country communities but, in particular, the effect it will have on Gunnedah. I acknowledge that the Mayor of Gunnedah and the upper House member Jenny Gardiner from The Nationals are in the gallery at this late hour. We are hearing claims and counterclaims from both sides of the debate about the amount of timber that will be available to the industry. Therefore, I call on the Government to conduct an independent assessment of exactly what timber is available and on offer from State Forests over the 20-year life of the contract being offered to Gunnedah Timbers by the Government. I will return to this later in my contribution.

The Government's announcement of a new package of conservation and forestry initiatives has provoked anger and frustration in the timber community in my electorate, that is, Gunnedah. The town of Gunnedah, represented by around 1,500 people, aired their thoughts on this bill during a rally on 2 June. The rally attracted community members and timber workers from surrounding communities, including those who live near the Pilliga State Forest, Narrabri, Baradine and Tamworth. The sentiment expressed by the attendees was clear, and I fully support their stance. I quote from the resolution passed unanimously at the rally, which states:

That the Gunnedah and District communities condemn the State Labor Government for converting the Brigalow Belt South Bioregion into a Community Conservation Area, and requests that the Government reverts to the Brigalow Region United Stakeholders option which has overwhelming community support.

I have always supported the Brigalow Region United Stakeholders [BRUS] option. This option allowed for a 2 per cent reduction to the current volumes of white cypress pine with little or no impact on the existing timber industry. It proposed 189,000 hectares of conservation reserves compared to 348,000 hectares of the best quality timber to be locked away under this bill. The BRUS option took shape from 24 stakeholders and took into account Aboriginal cultural heritage, job security, a viable timber industry, industry development opportunities, community vitality, management and access to public land, and protection of native vegetation, biodiversity and natural processes.

The Government is yet to explain to stakeholders and the affected communities why it has not adopted this option. It is also yet to release Ian Sinclair's report—which is believed to have recommended the BRUS option—despite repeated requests that it make the document public. The Government has clearly chosen the Green vote over the best interests of country communities, and those attending the rally expressed the strong sentiment that the Government has forsaken country people to attract the Sydney Greens vote in the State election scheduled for 2007. Through the rally, the community of Gunnedah has also asked the Government to honour its commitment to provide access to the resources needed to maintain the viability of the industries that rely on this resource for their livelihood.

I was presented with a petition containing the signatures of 2,400 people from Gunnedah and surrounding areas asking for this commitment and The Nationals have submitted it in the other place. As the petition was distributed by the Hon. Rick Colless, it is only appropriate that he present it to the Parliament, but I am extremely disappointed that Jenny Gardiner has chosen yet again to politicise the issue by sending out a media release tonight somehow claiming victory for The Nationals because I am not in the upper House. She simply reinforces my original concerns that The Nationals are only interested in headlines, not outcomes for the community. It is time for Jenny Gardiner to put aside her disinterest in the issue. She stood up in the other place and said many offensive things about timber workers, and I shall quote in small part her contribution, which stated:

The people in the timber industry are the most defenceless people that one could meet. Many of them are illiterate workers.

These are not the words of somebody interested in the workers; they are the words of somebody looking for cheap headlines. She does the industry and the workers a great disservice by continually pushing this destructive agenda. The community has made it clear that this decision will impact not only on timber workers, but also on the economy of the entire town and district. Gunnedah Timbers currently employs 50 workers at its Gunnedah and Baradine mills.

Mr ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Paul Lynch): Order! Government and Opposition members will come to order.

Mr PETER DRAPER: The workers in mills targeted for an exit package by the Government have been offered up-front payments of $72,000 should they choose to walk away from the industry or a reduced payment of $27,000 plus a guaranteed new job at or near where they live. I am not aware whether this package is currently on offer for Gunnedah Timbers, especially as the Government views it as a viable ongoing industry player. But no amount of alternative jobs will compensate for the fact that should Gunnedah Timbers qualify for a payout and decide to close, Gunnedah and district will lose the economic benefit and business diversity of an entire industry. Timber workers do not want council jobs or timber thinning jobs. They want to remain part of a thriving, sustainable timber milling industry. In Gunnedah 22 businesses have been identified as reliant on Gunnedah Timbers for its by-products, including timber transport, brickworks, composting, nurseries, landscape suppliers and disability services. If the mill closed, these jobs would be affected in these linked businesses, but there has been no consideration of them or the impact on the town, where there will be an inevitable downturn in trade.

Universal Composts owner Patrick Hennessy broke down in frustration and anger when he addressed the Gunnedah rally as his composting business, which is solely reliant on the mill's woodchips, will be bankrupt if the mill closes. However, not a single Government representative was on hand in Gunnedah to witness Mr Hennessy's heartfelt plea for commonsense to prevail. The Government maintains that the bill will provide timber millers such as Gunnedah Timbers with sufficient resources to remain viable throughout the life of the 20-year contract on offer. It has offered timber mill owners a fully compensable 20-year contract and a guaranteed quota of 57,000 cubic metres per annum.

I call upon the Government to have an independent assessment made of the actual volumes of timber available to the industry. Completely conflicting information is coming from the Government and from the timber industry in Gunnedah. Quite frankly, it is high time we heard the truth about the situation. I have been critical of the compensation package offered to timber millers since it was announced because, in my opinion, it is far too generous. It is so substantial that viable businesses such as Gunnedah Timbers, should they qualify for an exit package, will face a difficult choice—whether to remain in the industry with a guaranteed 20-year supply or take the $9 million on offer and walk away with a guarantee that their workers will receive compensation packages worth $26,000 and a guaranteed job or up to $76,000 on top of their existing entitlements.

The contracts being offered by the Government would lock in a guaranteed quantity and quality of timber for 20 years. If these were not delivered, Gunnedah Timbers would have the right to ask for compensation from the Government, which will underwrite the contracts. It would then be open to Gunnedah Timbers to litigate this issue if they were still unhappy and receive court ordered compensation. At any rate, nobody in the debate to date has mentioned the fact that Gunnedah Timbers has an existing contract that runs for a further five years. At the very least, I believe Gunnedah Timbers should let this run through to completion and then assess their options in 2010.

The five years of the current contract will deliver a guaranteed contracted 27,000 cubic metres per year, with an annual quota of about 8,000 cubic metres per year. That is a quota usually delivered in full but not absolutely guaranteed by Forests NSW in the same way that the contracted volume is. This means that at the moment Gunnedah Timbers can expect 175,000 cubic metres of cypress pine to be delivered to it over the next five years. I am advised that under the new 20-year contract Gunnedah Timbers would receive contracted volume of 33,000 cubic metres per year. That means that between now and 2025 it would have delivered 660,000 cubic metres all up guaranteed and fully compensable, should the Government fail to deliver the quantity or quality.

Mr ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Paul Lynch): Order! The honourable member for Lismore will cease interjecting.

Mr PETER DRAPER: In addition, I have been advised that the Government is prepared to invest in the operations of Gunnedah Timbers to allow further diversification at the rate of $2 for every $1 invested by Gunnedah Timbers. The moratorium has been lifted and all compartments that were affected by it that are now in zone 4 productive forests are available and open to the industry. The Minister for Primary Industries has attempted to bolster the allocation through the announcement of an additional area of 15,000 hectares of forest transferred back to Forests NSW for productive use by the industry. But the offer has failed to appease Gunnedah Timbers principals, George and Paddy Paul, who still have concerns over access to quality and quantity of raw product. An independent assessment is important to bring clarity to the debate and resolve the dispute between the mill owners and the Government.

The bottom line is that the community wants the timber industry to remain in Gunnedah, and the mill owners are facing a clear choice between continuing their business with a guaranteed supply, with the guarantee of a full compensation package every year should the Government be unable to deliver on its contracted agreement in regards to quantity and quality. Alternatively, the company could take the $9 million package should it be deemed eligible. This is understandably a very difficult choice and the true availability of quantity and quality must be clarified. The independent assessment must make it abundantly clear to Gunnedah Timbers that there is guaranteed access to the right quality and quantity of timber supplies so it can accept the Government's offer of a 20-year contract.

The Government has indicated a willingness to then invest in state-of-the-art milling equipment to help Gunnedah Timbers maximise production and value-add to its products, should the mill owners wish to expand their business further. The mill should stay, the industry and jobs should stay and the businesses reliant on it should remain viable. In the mind of the timber communities in the north-west, the BRUS option was the obvious way forward and, in the absence of its consideration and implementation, on their behalf I reiterate that I strongly oppose this bill in its current form. I call on the Government to listen to the community and adopt the BRUS option.

Debate adjourned on motion by Mr John Mills.

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