Ausmarine editorial – February 2009
I refer readers to Dick Lee's analysis of the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) and its many problems which commences on page 17 [Ausmarine February 2009].
Dick summarises the AFMA situation very well. He is, though, rather more generous to AFMA than I would have been. He suggests that AFMA could be cured with an infusion of new blood. I believe, contrarily, that AFMA is doomed and should be put out of its misery immediately.
While I largely agreed with the original concept for AFMA, it has since departed dramatically from that. Its guiding philosophy was originally one of sustainable fishing industry development. This has since been corrupted to one of sustained fishing industry destruction.
For the first few years under Chairman Jon McColl and Managing Director Richard Stevens, it performed quite well. It adhered largely to its guiding philosophy and was undoubtedly a global leading light in fisheries management.
Their successors, tragically, have departed almost totally from the well intended early days. AFMA's agenda has been hijacked by green extremists and they, combined with some aquiescent "shiny bum" bureaucrats, have seen AFMA converted into a powerful anti-industry machine.
A series of supine boards have gone along with all this and, in my view, largely failed in their duty of care. They have undertaken to manage the important Commonwealth-controlled part of Australia's fishing industry. Tragically, they have practically managed it out of existence.
I cannot believe that Australia's federal governments of either political colour ever intended to manage an important export industry out of existence. I am sure that neither the Labor nor Liberal/National parties would ever have wanted to do as much damage as has been done to the industry.
They have, however, done so by default. Unfortunately, these days, practically all policy seems to be developed by the bureaucracy and not, as previously, largely from within the parties themselves. At the last election neither party put forward any significant fisheries policy. That vacuum was very conveniently filled by a too often malignant bureaucracy.
Very unfortunately for the fishing industry, therefore, most current industry policy has been developed and propounded by a far from objective bureaucracy. With no properly organised or united fishing industry trade association, the industry has been easy meat for the well organised, well funded (largely by the fishing industry!) bureaucracy.
The politicians concerned can, to some extent, be excused for their "Pontius Pilate-like" lack of concern. They have, after all, barely been lobbied by industry. What they don't know doesn't concern them. Industry totally failed to let them know of its concerns.
The Directors and senior management of AFMA, though, should have known much better. Some did and others should have had considerable face-to-face contact with fishermen. They failed dismally to act in the industry's best interests. They have allowed the zealots to prevail and the industry is disappearing before our eyes.
Our politicians still have time to turn this important industry around. We still have some experienced fishermen and some fisheries infrastructure left in place.
Hopefully, the current recession will allow them to see more clearly through the ideological mists spread by the remote and uncaring Canberra bureaucracy. We need, more than ever, to ensure that every one of our export (or even import substitution) industries is performing as powerfully as possible.
Quite clearly, the fishing industry is being prevented from operating optimally or even sustainably by AFMA. We have tried many changes of directors and senior personnel at AFMA. Every change has failed dismally and the industry continues to countact. The people, not the concept, are the problem.
The only obvious solution is for AFMA to be abolished. Its functions should be reduced as much as possible. The AFMA rump should be incorporated into its departmental parent. AFMA has done more than enough damage. Let's prevent it from doing any more.