Tasmanian election could set the path for game management for years to come

All elections are important - they shape the places that we live in and set the course for our interests. Statements and promises made on the campaign trail have the ability to impact us for the next four years and beyond. 

In Tasmania we are at a clear crossroads with wild deer management. There are commercial interests looking to exploit the resource for a perceived short term gain and interstate lobby groups engaging in hyperbole and and chest beating about wild deer - with an ear more attuned to Fitzroy or Glebe than it is to Bothwell. 

ADA actively engages throughout the year with politicians on all sides of the Tasmanian Parliament. 

In the lead up to this weeks election we wrote formally to the parties asking for their formal positions on a number of matters: 

• Position on retaining our wild fallow deer herd in a sustainable position as the premier game species in Tasmania.

• Supporting and growing the tradition of recreational / game hunting as a legitimate pursuit for many Tasmanians, our visitors from interstate and overseas.

• Maintaining our duck hunting season in its current format, with only a true science based approach for regulating season length and bag limits.

• Position for the continuous support for Firearm owners and facilities for shooting sports. Improving the service output and quality of Firearm Service Department.

• The continuance of the Tasmanian Game Council as a direct feed of relevant quality information to the Minister.

• Position on continuance of Game Services Tasmania and your thoughts of this department been made more relevant to Tasmanian game hunters as a source for quality guidance and education on topic such as Quality Game Management, Property Based Management Plans, ethical hunting and increasing quality opportunities for hunting on public land.

We don't and won't tell you how to vote. We appreciate that decision belongs to every individual and that there are a number of factors, personal, economic, community and cultural that go into determining what you do at the ballot box. What we can do is give you the best information on where the various parties stand on the issues which are important to us as game hunters and give you our judgment on how the various parties are likely to perform. 

Below is a table of the responses from the main parties - it gives our take on their responses in a "traffic light" format...Green is good, Amber is in the middle, Red is not good. It's a crude measure, and we strongly encourage you to read all of the parties responses for yourself and make up your own mind. 

Response from the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party of Tasmania.

The response is short, succinct and speaks for itself. The SFFP support all of our issues unequivocally.  READ THE RESPONSE FROM THE SFFP HERE

Response from the Liberal Party of Tasmania.

The incumbents, and Minister Barnett in particular, have been pragmatic and progressive in their approach to deer management and hunting. We are encouraged by the reassurances about the half baked commercialisation proposal and the investments in an economic study and the deer management plan. 

The policy of requiring certification in order for hunters have game meat processed for personal use is out of step with the situation on the mainland - if re-elected we will continue to work with the Government to achieve a more realistic scenario.

READ THE RESPONSE FROM THE LIBERAL PARTY HERE

READ THE RESPONSE FROM THE PREMIER HERE

You can read the Tasmanian Liberals full recreational hunting policy on their website.

Response from the Tasmanian Labor Party. 

The Labor position is not completely terrible...but it is a bet each way. We welcome the support for the Deer Management Plan and for Game Services Tasmania. We are concerned however that Labor has fallen short of offering full throated support for the continuation of duck season. 

READ THE RESPONSE FROM LABOR HERE

Response from the Tasmanian Greens. 

We thank Cassy O'Connor in particular for engaging openly and honestly with us and the TDAC. There is a lot that we do not and will not agree with, but we do respect that the Greens are prepared to discuss issues with us and look for common ground - that is more than their colleagues do in any other jurisdiction. 

READ THE RESPONSE FROM THE GREENS HERE