One Nation has unveiled a new policy aimed at boosting Tasmania’s $1.2 billion forestry industry, as part of a broader push to make Australia self-sufficient in timber production.
Lee Hanson, the party’s lead Senate candidate for Tasmania, met with the Australian Forest Products Association in Hobart this week to outline the policy that would protect 5,700 jobs while addressing what the party describes as “Labor’s national housing crisis”.
“Tasmanian forestry sets the world benchmark in terms of responsible stewardship and I’m keen for that to continue,” Hanson said.
“Only about 14 out of every 10,000 native trees in Tasmania are harvested every year from public forests, which are then regenerated.”
The policy would keep old-growth forests and sensitive areas off-limits while allowing limited native tree harvesting.
Other key measures include government procurement that prioritises Aussie-grown timber, mandatory country-of-origin labelling and cracking down on illegal timber imports.
One Nation also proposes exempting basic building materials from GST for homes up to $1 million for five years and reducing electricity costs by 20%.
“Since the COVID-19 pandemic, builders’ timber costs have risen about 200%. It’s been an important factor in the collapse of many building and construction companies,” Hanson said.
Australia currently faces a $2 billion trade deficit in wood products despite being the sixth largest country globally.
“We don’t even make standard office paper in Australia anymore,” Hanson said.
The party plans to extend plantation establishment grants to help meet the industry’s target of an additional 18,000 hectares of forestry plantation annually.
“Trees are the ultimate renewable resource and forestry is a renewable industry One Nation is more than happy to support,” Hanson said.
“Improving our timber resources is critical to our efforts to increase housing supply.”
“We must plant more trees and become self-sufficient in timber so we don’t have to rely on imports from countries with poorer stewardship credentials and exotic pests, and we must also explore innovation in value-adding.”
The policy also includes support for forestry tertiary education and a national fire response plan for Australia’s forests.
