Media Release | 6 December 2025
Kirrilee Warr MLA
Shadow Minister for Fisheries
Shadow Minister for Fisheries Kirrilee Warr MLA has condemned the Minister for Fisheries’ decision to avoid meeting with fishing families blindsided by the Cook Labor Government’s sweeping and unexpected fishing bans announced this week.
Demersal fishers were briefed by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) on Friday about the West Coast bioregion ban and its devastating implications, at a meeting the Minister failed to attend.
Ms Warr has slammed the no show by the Minister as a failure of leadership.
“Families in the fishing industry, along with small businesses and workers in tourism, hospitality and retail across our regions, will be heavily impacted by these decisions.” she said.
“The Minister had the chance to engage with these fishing families but chose not.”
Ms Warr said this meeting no show follows a callous letter the government sent to license holders the day the sweeping ban was announced, directing fishers to a mental health service that no longer exists.
“This decision was poorly thought out, abysmally planned and atrociously executed. Yet again, the Cook Labor Government is making policy on the run and hard-working Western Australians are paying the price.”
“These decisions come at more than a financial cost, generations of investment will be wiped out, and family traditions, histories and community identities will be fractured,” Ms Warr said.
“They will also cost jobs, with employees across the fisheries, retail, hospitality and tourism sectors now facing deep uncertainty about their futures.”
Ms Warr said the Cook Labor Government’s clear disregard for the industry is outrageous.
“When both the Premier and his Minister for Fisheries dismiss these bans as merely ‘inconvenient,’ it shows just how out of touch this Government has become.”
“This week’s bans are effectively eviction notices delivered without warning, devastating hard-working Western Australians across the state.”
ENDS
