Great Australian Bight: parties soften stance as voters protest over drilling

A last-ditch effort to win votes in key seats in South Australia and Victoria has prompted both major parties to make changes to their policies on oil drilling in the Great Australian Bight.

Protests against offshore drilling in the Bight have forced
the Coalition and Labor to shift ground in the 2019 Australian election

The resources minister Matt Canavan – who has previously said offshore oil exploration should be a national priority – said on Thursday a re-elected Coalition government would commission an independent audit of the oil regulator’s consideration of exploration in the Bight.

Canavan and the environment minister Melissa Price said in a statement they recognised “the Great Australian Bight and the surrounding region are important to local communities, and the fishing and tourism industries”.

Read the story from The Guardian by Lisa Cox - “Great Australian Bight: parties soften stance as voters protest over drilling.”