Great outdoor gamble: Premier locks in fishers, boaters and hunters votes

Premier Daniel Andrews has invested heavily in keeping anglers, boaters and hunters in Victoria’s most marginal seats on-side.

Premier Daniel Andrews at Mordialloc Pier during the 2018 election campaign, promising to deliver every cent of boaters fees and registration to ramp upgrades and boat safety.

Victoria’s 300,000 licensed anglers, 433,979 boat owners and 200,000 recreational shooters hold enormous political clout, with thousands of them sitting in key outer urban and sand-belt seats.

Premier Daniel Andrews has long recognised the electoral power of the outdoor recreation sector, with his government’s first budget in 2015 allocating $46 million to lifting angler numbers to a million by 2020.

In 2018 Labor, along with the Coalition, promised another $35 million to the Target One Million program and that “every cent” of the $33 million boaters paid in marine license and boat registration fees would be spent on ramps and safety.

During their last term in government, Labor was even willing to incur the wrath of hundreds of farmers so it could extend the public’s rights to camp on crown land water frontages, most of which were already leased to adjoining farmers to graze livestock.

Daniel Andrews and his wife Catherine at the Mordialloc Pier in 2018. The Premier announced that a re-elected Andrews Government would improve boating and fishing regulations and licensing across Victoria. Picture: AAP Image/James Ross

Most recently, the Premier appointed Sonya Kilkenny as the new Outdoor Recreation Minister, overseeing the Fisheries Act, parts of the Wildlife and Marine Safety Acts, plus the Game Management Authority and Victorian Fisheries Authority.

It’s no mistake that Ms Kilkenny holds the electorate of Carrum, which is home to Victoria’s busiest boat ramp – Patterson River Launching Way.

Recreational fishing group VRFish’s executive officer Ben Scullin said the boating and fishing sector had “never been in a better position”, given the funding commitments and new ministerial position.

Sporting Shooters Association of Australia’s Victorian hunting development manager David Laird said “after decades of sitting as something of a square peg in the agriculture or environment portfolios, recognition that game hunting is a sustainable activity that contributes positively to regional economies is welcome and overdue”.

But Daniel Andrews’ focus on the outdoor recreation sector is likely not driven by any great love for the outdoors, given how infrequently he visits regional Victoria.

It’s the ballot box that drives the Premier’s passion, where he keeps a close eye on Victoria’s most marginal seats.

Labor holds Victoria’s most marginal seat, Bass, where fishing, boating and hunting are pivotal, by little more than 100 votes.

Sporting Shooters Association of Australia’s analysis shows there are at least 1250 recreational hunters in Bass, with thousands more in key marginal electorates.

In Hastings, which Labor holds by a margin of 1.4 per cent, there are 1975 recreational shooters, plus thousands more boaters and anglers.

About 4000 of Bayswater’s voters hold marine licenses, in a seat that Labor holds on a margin of 4.2 per cent or about 1800 votes.

Any seat with a margin less than 6 per cent is considered marginal and many of those represent Victorians with a passion for fishing, boating or hunting, including: Mornington held by the Liberals on a margin of 0.7 per cent, Pakenham (ALP) 0.4 per cent, Croydon (LIB) 1.4 per cent, Rowville (LIB) 3.7 per cent, Warrandyte (LIB) 4.2 per cent, Yan Yean (ALP) 4.5 per cent, Melton (ALP) 4.6 per cent, Sandringham (LIB) 5.1 per cent and Ripon (ALP) 3 per cent.