The 2013 FRAP Wipes Out 2600 Crew Jobs and 280 Vessels

We provide below a brief tabular summary of the number of rights, vessels and crew that operated in the line fish, squid, shark demersal and tuna pole fisheries immediately prior to and after the 30 December 2013 announcement.

The summary appears to indicate that -

1. The 30 December announcement has suddenly and without prior warning decimated the number of operators in the line, squid and tuna pole fisheries. The allocations in these sectors have possibly wiped out an estimated 280 vessels and 2600 jobs in just these four sectors alone; and

2. Critically, there is no information available on the numbers of vessels and crew that have been allocated in each of these sectors, which only compounds uncertainty and confusion.

Fishery	2005-2013 Vessels & Crew	2005-2013 Rights	Post 30 Dec Rights	Post 30 Dec Crew & Vessels
Squid	136 / 2422	121	93	Unknown
Tuna	190 / 2982	190	130	Unknown
Linefish	450 / 3450	450	215	Unknown
Shark	6	6	3	Unknown
Total	782 / 8854	767	438	---------------------

In the oyster fishery, which has historically been dominated by rural women pickers, there were 145 pickers who each held their own individual harvesting rights since 2005. Post 30 December, there are a measly 54 rights.

PS. DAFF had promised and undertaken that the lists of successful and unsuccessful applicants would be made public on 31 December 2013. First, the undertaking was that these lists would be posted on the DAFF website "in the morning" and then Desmond Stevens promised that the lists would be available "at 2pm" on the DAFF website. Once again, DAFF cannot be trusted to keep to its own deadlines and promises. DAFF's communication people have since refused to respond to email queries as to why these lists are not available and when we can expect them (not that we will take them seriously at all).