Tony Abbott tells Tasmania too much forest is 'locked up' in national parks

Tony Abbott has said Australia has too much forest placed within national parks, declaring that the country is now “open for business for the forestry industry”.

In a speech to the ForestWorks dinner in Canberra, Abbott attacked the “Green ideology” which he blamed for hampering economic growth in Tasmania and unnecessarily protecting swaths of the state’s forest.

Abbott reiterated his commitment to strip World Heritage listing from 74,000 hectares of Tasmanian forest, and signalled displeasure at the extent of national parks in general, which cover almost 4% of Australia’s land mass.

Abbott said: “Now I’m all in favour of protecting pristine wilderness in proportion – I am all in favour of that. But why should we lock up, as some kind of world heritage sanctuary, country which has been logged, degraded or planted for timber? Why should we do that?

“We have quite enough national parks, we have quite enough locked-up forests already. In fact, in an important respect, we have too much locked-up forest.

“So my friends, when I say that I want Australia to be open for business, I mean open for business for the forestry industry.”

The Tasmanian listing was announced under the previous Labor government as part of a peace deal to solve the state’s long-running battle between loggers and environmentalists.

The forestry industry has said it does not want the World Heritage listing revoked, due to the difficulty of selling timber from a previously protected area.

In a speech crafted with the upcoming Tasmanian state election in mind, Abbott said “the Green ideology has done so much damage to Tasmania. We all know that Tasmania has the lowest wages in our country. It’s got the lowest GDP per head in our country.

“It’s got the lowest life expectancy in our country. It’s got the lowest education attainments in our country and it’s got the highest unemployment in our country and funnily enough, for the last eight years it’s had a government, in large measure, dominated by the Greens,” he said.

In what amounts to Abbott’s most in-depth comments about the environment since forming government, the prime minister outlined a philosophy based largely on what people can derive from natural resources.

“When I look out tonight at an audience of people who work with timber, who work in forests, I don’t see people who are environmental bandits, I see people who are the ultimate conservationists,” he said.

“That’s what I see and I want to salute you. I salute you as people who love the natural world, as people who love what mother nature gives us and who want to husband it for the long-term best interests of humanity.

“Man and the environment are meant for each other. The last thing we do – the last thing we should want – if we want to genuinely improve our environment is to want to ban men and women from enjoying it, is to ban men and women from making the most of it and that’s what you do. You intelligently make the most of the good things that God has given us.”

Abbott praised Greg Hunt, his environment minister, for understanding that “the environment is meant for man and not just the other way around”.

The prime minister also announced the creation of a forestry industry advisory council, currently being finalised by the government, to provide information on the sector.

The Greens leader, Christine Milne, launched a scathing attack on Abbott over his comments, claiming it showed he held an “Old Testament” view of nature.

“He talked about doing a deal with the devil and it reminded me of the placards he stood in front of which said ‘ditch the witch’,” Milne told Guardian Australia.

“With Barnaby Joyce saying he is praying for rain, it’s clear we have a government with an Old Testament view of the environment, that man alone can dominate the environment. It’s an anti-science view where the environment is to be exploited by the resource industry.

“[Abbott] is a dangerous, dangerous man. He’s an unreconstructed man. It’s concerning to me that we have an ideologically driven prime minister who has no empathy for the wonder of the natural world, from our reefs to our rainforests. These are the things people think of when they think of Australia.”

Milne added that Abbott’s strategy of gathering votes in Tasmania was likely to backfire.

“He has completely misread the Tasmanian situation – there’s a poll that shows 90% of Tasmanians support the forest peace plan,” she said. “I think many genuine conservatives in Tasmania will worry about Abbott’s radical agenda. Trashing existing national parks will scare a lot of conservatives.”