Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Tony Burke today announced he would commission an independent audit looking specifically at the treatment of Bass Strait scallop fishers by the former Liberal-National government.

Mr Burke said he had visited the Lakes Entrance Fishermen’s Cooperative recently at the request of Labor Candidate for Gippsland Darren McCubbin, who had raised concerns about last year’s scallop licence buyout.

Following the visit, Mr Burke has announced the Government will commission an audit into the treatment of the scallop fishers, ahead of a national audit of fisheries buybacks by the Australian National Audit Office, which is not expected to report until 2009.

“The local fishers made it clear to me that they felt ripped off by the previous government’s neglect during the buy-back process,” Mr Burke said.

“Darren McCubbin and the fishers made a good case for a specific audit into the grounds on which the former Liberal-National government rejected Bass Strait scallop fishery licence tenders.

“As Labor stated before the election, Bass Strait scallop fishers, particularly in the fishing port of Lakes Entrance, believe they were unfairly treated by the former Howard government.

“Labor will deliver on its election commitment to determine whether the unsuccessful scallop licence tenders were rejected on the basis of good public policy and value-for-money considerations.

“The new Bass Strait audit will help to move that process along and give local scallop fishers a better understanding of what happened during the buyout.

“The auditors will visit ports to hear the concerns of individual fishers first-hand, as I have.”

The Bass Strait Central Zone scallop fishery was closed to fishing in 2006 for a minimum period of three years.