[Greens-Media] Ports privatisation deal puts economy and ducks in crosshairs

[John Kaye]

Ports privatisation deal puts economy and ducks in crosshairs 
 
Media release: 21 November 2012
 
The O'Farrell government's obsession with privatisation will damage the future of the state's economy and allow the Shooters and Fishers party to realise their dream of expanding hunting in NSW, according to Greens NSW MP John Kaye.
 
Dr Kaye said: "There is nothing good for the people of NSW in this deal.
 
"It's now clear that the deal has been done between the Shooters and Fishers and the O'Farrell government to privatise Port Kembla and Port Botany in return for duck hunting.
 
"The ports are a profit-making public asset that will inevitably be handed over to the private sector at less than their long-term value to the state's economy.
 
"The O'Farrell government's dodgy economics will take away the capacity to borrow and finance  billions of dollars for infrastructure. 
 
"Privatising Port Kembla will hand over the economic future of the Illawarra to corporations that care only for their own bottom line. The region's link to the global economy will become the plaything of a corporate boardroom.
 
"I tried to negotiate with the conservative cross bench members to delay the legislation while the community had its say.
 
"The Shooters and their allies, the Christian Democrats, had no interest in the Illawarra or the Botany community.
 
"This is all about their ability to control the state, despite receiving less than 265,000 votes between them.
 
"Duck hunting, while currently legal on rice farms under a deal cut between the Shooters and Fishers party and the previous Labor government, is about to become much more widespread.
 
"Along with the legalisation of silencers and shooting in national parks, the Shooters are steadily extracting their agenda from the O'Farrell government. 
 
"The previous Labor government played the same game with the Shooters, creating the Game Council and a raft of slacker gun laws.
 
"Now the Coalition has made itself hostage to a party that received less than 3.7 percent of the vote," Dr Kaye said. 
 
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455 
 
 
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John Kaye
Greens member of the NSW Parliament
phone: (02) 9230 2668
fax: (02) 9230 2586
mobile: 0407 195 455
email: john.kaye at parliament.nsw.gov.au 
web: www.johnkaye.org.au ( http://www.johnkaye.org.au/ )
 
mail: Parliament House, Macquarie St, Sydney NSW 2000