Minister abandons lifting commercial catch in Port Phillip and Western Port bays

The Government has abandoned a quota deal with commercial fishers after public outcry from recreational anglers.

Longliners will be banned from catching King George whiting as “bycatch” in Port Phillip, Corio and Western Port Bays.

Fishing Minister Melissa Horne has abandoned lifting eight longliners commercial catch in Port Phillip, Western Port and Corio Bays to 232 tonnes, after a public outcry from recreational anglers.

Documents seen by The Weekly Times show Seafood Industry Victoria, representing longliners, has demanded the Minister give them unlimited access to “bycatch”, over and above the 88 tonne snapper quota they already hold across the bays.

One document shows the Victorian Fisheries Authority has countered, by offering the eight licence holders 144 tonnes of “bycatch” on top of their 88 tonne snapper quota, consisting of:

24 tonnes of King George whiting

16 tonnes of calamari

16 tonnes of flathead

8 tonnes of shark (mainly gummy shark)

80 tonnes of “other” species.

The deal delivers longliners a combined 232 tonnes of snapper and other species, despite the VFA’s latest catch records showing the commercial fishers harvested just 30 tonnes of snapper in Port Phillip Bay in 2019-20, with no records of catches in Western Port Bay.

But after publishing these details last Friday, Minister Horne backtracked, announcing on Sunday that the commercial catch would be limited to the original 88 tonnes of snapper, plus just 24 tonnes of bycatch.

Each longliner’s commecial catch will now be limited to 11t of snapper, a tonne of shark and two tonnes of other bycatch (excluding King George Whiting and calamari).

The decision has been welcomed by recreational anglers, whose VRFish lobby group executive officer Ben Scullin said it was “fantastic news”.

Expanding the commercial catch threatened to undermine the Government spending $27 million of recreational fishers’ license fees and taxpayers’ money in buying out 42 commercial fishers’ netting licences to boost recreational fishing across the three bays.

Recreational anglers have headed off a push to lift commercial fishing in Port Phillip, Corio and Western Port Bays.

As part of the original buyout the eight longline fishers were left to fish the bays, but legislation was passed to limit their catch to 88 tonnes of snapper.

In October 2015 then Labor Agriculture Minister Jaala Pulford introduced the Fisheries Amendment Bill, which capped the eight longliners quota at 88 tonnes of snapper.

Last Friday Seafood Industry Victoria chief executive Steve Wojtkiw, who represents the longliners, said they were still in negotiations with government

At the time he said negotiations were continuing and that “the snapper catch was seasonal and therefore unpredictable,” which is why “access to bycatch would provide more certainty to licence holders.

At the time Minister Horne said “no decision on bycatch limits has been made, nor any agreement met.”

Documents seen by The Weekly Times show the VFA, which reports to Ms Horne, has made an offer to SIV’s longliners totalling 232 tonnes of snapper and bycatch.

But as of yesterday Ms Horne issued a media release stating the VFA would be conducting further consultation with longliners over coming days on bycatch, had issued a notice that each of them would be limited to a tonne of shark and two tonnes of other species.