The long-awaited appointment of Game Management Authority (GMA) Board members, as announced today, was welcomed by Member for Northern Victoria Daniel Young.

“There is a lot of work to do in the area of game management in Victoria, and this new board will allow that work to start,” Mr Young said.

As member of the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party, Mr Young has a keen interest in seeing the implementation of the Victorian Sustainable Hunting Action Plan 2016-2020, for which the GMA will play a critical role in its successful delivery.  The GMA is also likely to play a part in implementing recommendations handed down yesterday, in the Inquiry into the Control of Invasive Animals on Crown Land.

In support of the role the GMA plays in making hunting sustainable, Mr Young has introduced private member’s Bill to Parliament to amend the Game Management Authority Act 2014.

His proposed amendments and a reinvigorated board should create ideal conditions to take sustainable hunting to a new level in Victoria.

“While we were expecting an earlier announcement on new board members, the recent appointments will add some synergy to our vision and potential for the Game Management Authority as well as the implementation of the pest inquiry recommendations to bolster the role of the organisation in the control of invasive animals,” Mr Young said.

“The new GMA chairman Brian Hine, who was appointed in December, has also taken the initiative to catalogue issues about the management of the state’s wetlands, with a list of recommendations that also need to be considered by the Government.

“There are many people in the community keen to see action on proactive game management and conservation, but the Government needs to step up and support this.”