Lin Thorp voted strongly for increasing fishing restrictions

The majority voted in favour of a motion to read the bill for a third time.(Read more about the stages that a bill must pass through to become law here. ) This means that the bill is now passed in the Senate and, since it has already passed in the House of Representatives, it will now become law.

Background to the bill

The bill was introduced "to establish an independent expert panel to conduct an assessment into the potential environmental, social and economic impacts of a declared commercial fishing activity and to prohibit the declared commercial fishing activity while the assessment is undertaken".(Read more about the bill, including the text of the bill and its explanatory memoranda, here. )

It was introduced following the controversial arrival of the super trawler FV Margiris into Australian waters. Opponents to the trawler argue that its presence "will cause localised overfishing and could drive away bluefin tuna".(Read more about the arguments against the super trawler here. ) Supporters disagree, saying the trawler's quota is sustainable.(As above. ) Environment Minister Tony Burke position was there "there was significant uncertainty regarding the impact of such a large fishing vessel on the marine environment",(Read more in the bills digest.) hence the need for an assessment into the potential impacts.

The majority voted in favour of a motion to read the bill for a second time.(Read more about the stages that a bill must pass through to become law here. ) This means that the majority agreed with the main idea of the bill.

Background to the bill

The bill was introduced "to establish an independent expert panel to conduct an assessment into the potential environmental, social and economic impacts of a declared commercial fishing activity and to prohibit the declared commercial fishing activity while the assessment is undertaken".(Read more about the bill, including the text of the bill and its explanatory memoranda, here. )

It was introduced following the controversial arrival of the super trawler FV Margiris into Australian waters. Opponents to the trawler argue that its presence "will cause localised overfishing and could drive away bluefin tuna".(Read more about the arguments against the super trawler here. ) Supporters disagree, saying the trawler's quota is sustainable.(As above. ) Environment Minister Tony Burke position was there "there was significant uncertainty regarding the impact of such a large fishing vessel on the marine environment",(Read more in the bills digest.) hence the need for an assessment into the potential impacts.

The majority voted against a motion introduced by Greens Senator Rachel Siewert, which means that it was rejected. The motion was:

That the Senate calls on the Government to ban all super trawlers from Australian waters.(Super trawlers include fishing boats such as the FV Margiris, later called the Abel Tasman. )

This motion was made in response to the arrival the super trawler named FV Margiris into Australian waters. Opponents to the trawler argue that its presence "will cause localised overfishing and could drive away bluefin tuna".(Read more about the arguments against the super trawler here. ) Supporters disagree, saying the trawler's quota is sustainable.(As above.) Due to these disparate views on the effect of super trawlers on fish populations, senators in favour of the policy "For developing and enforcing fishing restrictions" could have voted either way (i.e. either 'aye' or 'no'), depending on their views on this issue.

The majority voted against a motion introduced by Greens Senator Peter Whish-Wilson, which means that it was unsuccessful. The motion was:

That the Senate—

(a) notes, in regard to the introduction of the factory ship FV Margiris to the Australian Small Pelagic Fishery, the range of significant and justifiable concerns, including but not limited to:

(i) the localised depletion of fish stocks,

(ii) mammalian by-catch, including seals and dolphins,

(iii) impacts on other industries, including tourism,

(iv) the assertion that this super trawler is only economically viable because it previously received European Union subsidies and the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) has lifted the fishery quotas,

(v) public access, transparency and scrutiny of any operational compliance data, and

(vi) the non-compliance of AFMA quota-setting processes with the Fisheries Administration Act 1991 (the Act); and

(b) calls on the Government to:

(i) reverse the decision to lift the quota for the Small Pelagic Fishery and examine the compliance of the AFMA-led process that led to this decision with the Act,

(ii) demonstrate that it has fully examined and mitigated the impacts of localised depletion that the FV Margiris will have and ensure that a bioregional approach has been taken in setting the harvest strategy under which this ship would operate, and

(iii) demonstrate that 100 per cent observer coverage will be achieved on-board to ensure compliance and minimal by-catch, given that the ship will operate 24 hours a day, and ensure all compliance data will be publically available.