It has not been a week since the GKNP was announced, which includes 40% of the production of State Forests in northern NSW. This week has revealed a lot in NSW State politics.
Firstly, the Minister for the Environment waxed on about the creation of an international tourist attraction. Obviously, she has not been briefed on a review by an internationally recognised professor of economics, business and management specialising in tourism.
In short, the report was scathing of the one produced by the University of Newcastle, describing it as a poorly modelled, self-serving answer to the brief provided by Destinations North Coast, Coffs Harbour Council, and others, demonstrating highly flawed research. Visitation numbers to Coffs Harbour were modelled on visitation numbers to London!
The Minister also ignored the real experience in the Murray Valley when, in 2010, one of her ALP predecessors largely closed a timber industry by making similar claims.
These days in Deniliquin and Mathoura, few tourists, even fewer businesses and less population as people moved away. Now, Ministers Paul Scully and Kate Wasington, when in Opposition, visited Mathoura and the National Park and saw firsthand the ghost town that had developed.
Of course, the Minister fails to acknowledge that koalas tend to stay hidden. It will not be like Taronga Zoo, where koalas in the koala enclosure are on display and will remain the premier koala viewing location, as it is conveniently located near 4- and 5-star accommodation, just half an hour away.
Then there is the governance around the announcement. No one realised that ceasing delivery of wood to the largest sawmiller in the North would impact downstream wood residue businesses. These range from other mills for their boilers, beef producers and processors, sugar refining, poultry producers, equine centres, landscapers supplying Sydney and those businesses providing maintenance.
All would be entitled to compensation for loss of business and possibly retrenched employees. Timber jobs are well-paid and specialised, forcing closures and people to move away from regional centres. The costs keep growing. These have not been considered.
The Minns Government did not do its homework – it played politics.
Alex Greenwich, MP for Sydney, ran a notice of motion on 10 Sept 2025. He was the leader of the crossbench who allegedly forced the maximum size GKNP by trading support for the Government’s Workers Compensation (cutting) legislation. He lives in inner Sydney.
Two National MPs are trying hard: Ritchie Williams and Gurmesh Singh. Michael Kemp, the MP for Oxley, who is the real fighter, is away from Parliament due to a death in the family. The people doing something in the Parliament are Upper House members Hon Mark Banasiak, Hon Wes Fang, and Hon Nichole Overall.
And then there is the Liberal Party that dealt itself out of the issue by abstaining from the vote after the first debate on the GKNP on 9 Sept 2025. They have not sought recent briefings or information from the industry, which comprises small and medium-sized businesses.
The Liberal Parliamentary leadership considers the issue to be complex because the ENGOs have been running letter-writing campaigns. When one Liberal MP was asked about the letter-writing campaign, the number of letters received was equivalent to 1 per cent of the population of the particular electorate.
Modelling that to the total number of voters makes it about 3 per cent. Polling data from several years of different surveys is consistent with support for koalas and the GKNP. Clearly not a majority nor a reason to abandon impacted small businesses and cripple the timber supply to the statewide housing industry.
The Coalition has not held the Government accountable for its administrative incompetence in the areas of Treasury, Premiers, Climate Energy and Environment, Primary Industry, and regional development.
The voters deserve better. They will not get better until the Coalition becomes a political force and holds an ALP Government to account.
A Government that presents as slick and reasonable but has a string of administrative stumbles going straight to the keeper.
