By Regional Victorians Opposed to Duck Shooting inc.
State bureaucrats are planning how to spend another $5.3 million of taxpayers money to grow hunting – an activity in which less than 1% of the population participate.
Stakeholder comments closed last Friday about the second “Sustainable Hunting Action Plan” or “SHAP 2”. There was no independent evaluation of SHAP 1 and there are no known government promoted “Sustainable Action Plans” for any other pastime. Documents obtained through FOI show hunting groups have been in discussion with government since January about SHAP 2. A small number of non-hunting groups were afforded a one hour meeting July 22, which was described as "a pre-determined outcome, totally pro-hunting".
Documents obtained through FOI show the responsible Minister met with hunting groups at least five times in the last six months while ignoring nine requests in the same timeframe from regional community groups wanting to discuss the negative impacts of hunting on their lives and livelihoods.
The hunting / shooting industry has enjoyed over $65 million of public funding in Victoria since 2014, including generous government grants to purchase land. This appears to be a legacy plan instigated under Peter Walsh -Nationals MP, who recently disclosed his own membership of hunt club Field and Game Australia.
SHAP 2 is set to include yet another taxpayer funded survey of hunters to guesstimate their social/economic benefits. There has never been a cost-benefit analysis done, nor any surveys of the non -hunting community about how hunting impacts them.
Regarding safety, hunters have free access to over 50% of Victoria’s public land to kill animals, mostly not signposted nor monitored. It is understood only two risk assessments have ever been carried out, at wetlands in Mildura which were subsequently closed to duck shooting for safety reasons. FOI confirms no desk-top studies have been performed regarding proximity of homes to shooting areas. Things are very different in other states.
Quotes by Regional Victorians Opposed to Duck Shooting inc.
“Most Victorians would find this taxpayer support of hunting offensive. Why should taxpayers be paying for more and more grants for hunting club and hunting promotions? After millions in taxpayer support already – far more than any other recreation has been provided - It’s time this minority group funded its own way. There are other causes the government could be funding.”
“If the Minister does not meet with non-hunting organisations, particularly an organization representing regional communities that has conducted numerous surveys to capture the impacts of hunting on regional people, how can she hope to know the impacts of hunting to anyone other than hunters?”
“Many would agree, the only way hunting could be safe, responsible, or sustainable, is if it were ceased, at least until real numbers were known of each species, it was proven that the animals consented to be in the game which was classed as both humane and “fair chase”, and the real impacts to the wider community - both human and animal - were known.”
