Sunfish member supports reef fishing compo calls

[jaybee]

ABC News
Last Update: Friday, May 7, 2004. 9:40 AM (AEST)
About 100 people affected by Great Barrier Reef commercial fishing closures have attended a consultation meeting in Mackay.

An independent five-member panel is touring Queensland ports to gather information ahead of developing a restructuring package.

Lance Murray from recreational anglers' group Sunfish says while all fishing sectors did not necessarily see eye to eye before the representative area program was legislated, he supports the commercial industry's calls for sufficient compensation.

He says fishermen are entitled to assistance like cane farmers are getting.

"They should be entitled to every single dollar, no different from the cane farming industry," he said.

"If they've been put out of business they should be financially compensated and those who are left should be able to make a substantial income."

[Jeremy]

What the hell is someone from the RECREATIONAL ANGLERS GROUP Sunfish going around saying this for? I have never seen anyone from the Commercial anglers lobby group saying they thought rec anglers should be able to catch a fish every time they go fishing, or that rec anglers should be compensated back during the ring netting fiasco (for example) when the mackerel stocks were decimated.

I want my recreational anglers group to reprresent recreational anglers, not commercial fishermen. Commercial fishers are not farmers and they should not have gotten into an unsustainable business in the first place.

Pull your bloody head in Lance Murray.

Jeremy Arnold