‘contractors’ from within or outside the recreational fishing sector. EXEMPTIONS At the heart of these issues is the question: who are the large number of adults who fish without licences? Every one of them is a stakeholder in RFL-funded programs and is entitled to a say on future
while a little more than 500,000 adults fished unlicensed. As compliance with the licence is so high, can it be that about 60% were exempt from holding a licence on account of their senior, pensioner, veteran, carer, disabled, or Aboriginal status? From the national survey, we have clear
that included examination of “the costs and benefits of expanding the categories of recreational fishers required to hold a licence (i.e., current exemptions).” However, the only form of assessment of expanding the licence was an informal discussion among a limited group of fishing stakeholders. Earlier, in
Figure 5. Adult participation in fishing, by age group, in 2020. (National Social and Economic Survey of Recreational Fishers, 2018-2021).
Figure 4. The Grants Program now receives 14% of RFL funding. RFL investments, as well as enjoying the opportunity to fish. But is it fair to expect a minority of adult fishers to buy the licences that pay for benefits they all enjoy without making any contribution? Released in March 2023, the National Social and Economic Survey of Recreational Fishers, gives us the best recent estimate of the numbers of adult fishers in the state: 840,900 in 2018. That’s an important starting point in examining the matter of exemptions. VFA statistics indicate that about 95% of adult fishers comply with the requirement to hold a licence. It is also suggested that, under the current suite of licence exemptions, the cause of the declining percentage of licensed fishers is increasing numbers reaching ages where they become exempt from holding licences. Now, with the 2018 estimate of adult numbers, we can look at ‘exemptions’ in relationship to the number of licences sold and resulting revenue for each year. First, the number who fished in 2018/19 while holding licences is a combination of those who bought licences in that year, plus those who bought 3-year licences in the previous two years. That’s a total of about 333,000 licensed adults who fished in that year,
evidence that over-65-yearolds make up the smallest adult age group, comprising just 15% of fishers in 2020 (see Fig.5). That suggests that the other non-age linked exemptions largely account for most unlicensed adult fishers. That’s a lot of active, unlicensed fishers that qualify for exemptions – exempt fishers outnumber licensed fishers by a factor of two. This seems disproportionately high and means that every RFL-holder today is subsidising two non-paying adult fishers. It’s simplistic to propose that exempt fishers are less able to contribute to the RFL program at some level. As Fig.5 shows, most fishers are 18 to 44 years old, spanning the age-group of young families and householders, many of whom face comparable financial challenges to those older age groups. A PATH TO A SOLUTION In 2019, VRFish wrote to then-minister, Jaala Pulford, seeking a review of the RFL arrangements. Among their major concerns, they pointed to the need for “A more stable and equitable revenue base for improving recreational fishing.” VRFish stated their concern about the minority – RFL-holders – subsidising the non-licensed majority. The review proceeded under terms of reference
2016, when referring to unlicensed adult fishers supported by licence holders, a government review of the RFL fees and licence structure observed that, “Such cross-
subsidisation should be avoided,” but didn’t evaluate reduced-fee licences. The Government’s response to the 2019 review was, “The current and longstanding exemptions for holding a RFL should be retained, as the benefits of any changes are unlikely to outweigh the costs.” However, four years on, I think it might be worth having another look at this issue. So, here’s a quick sketch of the potential cost benefit. As outlined above, in 2018/19 there were about 500,000 unlicensed fishers. Setting aside those who might take out short-term licences, if 250,000 took out 1-year licences at halfprice ($19 at the 2023 rate),
the boost to RFL revenue would be $4.75M. The net benefit would substantially outweigh the added administrative costs. CONCLUSION On the recent 20-year trend, Victoria is heading to where fewer than 30% of adult fishers hold licences, while the available annual Grants Fund share dips towards less than 10% of annual RFL funding. This position has been reached under the administration of successive governments over the past decade. Coinciding with the steady decline in annual RFL sales, the post-2014 Victorian Government has invested about $90 million aimed at boosting participation to one million
fishers. However, although this may have stimulated regional economies and business interests, I doubt that the decreasing number of RFL-holders would want to subsidise even more unlicensed fishers. In their 2019 letter to Minister Pulford, VRFish stated, “A long-standing concern is a minority of recreational fishers are subsidising the majority of Victorian recreational fishers who do not need to purchase a licence.” If current fishing trends continue, the government will hopefully reconsider the benefit of low-cost licences without exemptions, so that 30% of fishers don’t have to carry the cost for all.
FISHING NEWS
Spying on yellowtail kingfish Have you ever wondered where all the kingfish go? Well so has Deakin University, and thanks to a $216,000 grant through fishing licence fees, they’re conducting a 3-year study to better understand the residency and movement of kingfish in our waters. So far, the team has tagged 10 kingfish with help from local fishers and charter boats off Portland, Port Fairy, Port Phillip Bay,
Western Port and Wilsons Promontory, to see just what these kingies get up to. It’s been a great way to share with the community what goes into research projects like this. Where are the kingies going? How long are they spending in each place? Are they coming back to Victorian waters? These are the types of questions the team at Deakin and collaborators are hoping to answer. For now, the researchers
are sitting tight until they get a ping from one of the satellite tags, and those with acoustic transmitters to swim past the network of listen stations that have been deployed. As the water cools the team are gearing up for the next season to tag some more. Deakin Associate Professor of Marine Science Daniel Ierodiaconou said the team are also deploying advanced baited remote
underwater video systems, specifically designed to meet industry needs for documenting pelagic fish. “Our previous surveys focused on fishes close to the seabed,” he said. “The data we capture now wil complement this information, with species found closer to the surface filling a significant knowledge gap for this region.” – Victorian Fisheries Authority JUNE 2023 95
