17 March 2019

Guy Barnett, Minister for Primary Industries and Water

Independent Queensland Fruit Fly (QFF) Review Terms of Reference released

The Independent Review into the Tasmanian QFF incursion and response has now commenced.

The 2018-2019 Queensland fruit fly (QFF) response was the largest biosecurity response in Tasmania’s history, leading to the successful reinstatement of our fruit fly free status in January this year.

The Terms of Reference for the Review will consider the QFF response including the lessons learnt to ensure that Tasmania is best placed to manage the risk which QFF poses to our horticultural industries in terms of -

• Lessons from the incursion applicable to national and state arrangements;
• Industry engagement and communication;
• Community information and communications;
• Improvements to the biosecurity emergency response system to protect Tasmania from any future incursions; and,
• Any other related matters that will inform future incursion responses.

The Review, which will be released before the end of the year, will make recommendations for any revisions to the Tasmanian Fruit Fly Strategy 2017-2050.

The Review will be led by Mike Blake, who brings a wealth of experience to the role as a former Auditor-General of Tasmania, the current TasTafe Chair and having previously undertaken the independent review of the 2016 floods in Tasmania.

Written submissions to the Review can be made until 31 May 2019, and public consultation sessions will be held in the middle of the year.

Further information about the Review and how to make a submissions is available on the DPIPWE website at www.dpipwe.tas.gov.au

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