Election 2022: ‘Albanese heard only the Greens on forestry’, says Labor stalwart Dick Adams

Tasmanian Labor stalwart Dick Adams says Anthony Albanese in the past only listened to the Greens on forestry and did not understand the industry when seeking to curtail logging in his state.

Former Tasmanian Labor MP Dick Adams. Picture: Chris Kidd

Tasmanian Labor stalwart Dick Adams says Anthony Albanese in the past listened only to the Greens on forestry issues and did not understand the industry when seeking to curtail logging in his state.

The lifetime ALP member and MP for 20 years told The Australian one-sided consultation was the reason Mr Albanese backed Mark Latham’s politically disastrous forest policy, even after it was rejected by voters in 2004.

Mr Latham’s policy to protect 240,000ha of Tasmanian native forest from logging cost the party the seats of Bass and Braddon at the October 2004 election and fed a national blue-collar revolt against Labor.

Mr Adams called Mr Albanese a “mangy dog” when he “snuck” into his electorate in the month after the electoral disaster and backed the “principles” of the Latham policy as “absolutely right”.

“Albo came out after being briefed by the green side of the ­argument only and made his statements, which was a disingenuous thing to do at that time,” he said on Wednesday.

He said many statements by Mr Albanese, as then-environment spokesman, about the Tasmanian forest industry were simply “wrong”.

“There was no old growth forest being harvested (as Mr Albanese claimed); 400-year-old trees (that Mr Albanese said needed protection from logging) are no good for the commercial industry.

“The wood they were talking about was regrowth from areas that had been harvested at least three times over the last 200 years.

“And that had been at the crux of the Regional Forest Agreement. That was what the disappointment was all about.”

Even so, he believed Mr Albanese had since matured as a politician and he had welcomed him to Launceston during this election campaign’s Tasmania launch.

“Don’t forget this was 20 years ago and Albo has learnt a lot since then and has become a much more rounded politician,” he said.

“I was there welcoming him at the party launch in Launceston and I shook his hand and wished him well. He can have his passport back (to come to Tasmania) now!”

Mr Adams, a councillor on the Northland Midlands Council, said the context of his attack on Mr ­Albanese at the time should be understood. “(It was) in the heat of this discussion in 2004, when both my Labor colleagues in the north lost their seats,” he said.

“I was left standing because of my work and my decision to speak out on the betrayal by the then-party leader (Mr Latham).”

Forestry has flared as an issue this campaign, after the Australian Forest Products Association opted to back the Coalition’s industry policy over Labor’s.