I appreciate the concerns expressed about protecting our marine environment but do believe it is important to strike the right balance.

Let me assure you that the Government is retaining all national marine reserves and parks, including their boundaries, however it does plan to redraft management plans.

The Government will create new management plans to protect the marine environment, based on science and in consultation with stakeholders and local communities.

The Government does not support locking up large areas of ocean to prevent fishers from taking out a boat and casting a line.  Changes proposed by the previous government would have meant it would be against the law for recreational fishers to cast a line at some of their favourite fishing spots.

The Minister for the Environment, the Hon. Greg Hunt MP, has asked his department to begin work on a marine reserves review to consider what management arrangements will best protect marine ecosystems and accommodate the many industries and recreational fishers that use our oceans.