Get sharks off protected list: Buswell
Troy Buswell has signalled demands for great white sharks to be removed from the Federal protected species list, warning that a series of attacks is threatening the South West's economy.
The Fisheries Minister said yesterday that there had been a worrying number of "interactions" with great whites, which suggested their numbers were increasing.
On Saturday, surfer Chris Boyd became the third person to be killed by a great white at Gracetown in the past decade.
Eleven people have died from shark attacks in WA since 2000.
Mr Buswell said it was critical the safety of beachgoers came ahead of great whites and he would ask the Abbott Government to consider whether they needed to be protected.
The comments from the Vasse MP come as the State Government reviews its "shark response" policies, which Mr Buswell conceded were inadequate.
They also came as Premier Colin Barnett said professional fishermen could be hired as shark hunters while all but ruling out the idea of culls.
"I'm not going to pre-empt where we land on (the review) but it may well be we have to enter into communication with the Commonwealth on the protected status of great white sharks," Mr Buswell said.
"My view is that we need to put the safety of people who use the water over and above sharks."
Reviewing the protected status of great whites was flagged by former fisheries minister Norman Moore last year after a spate of five shark-related deaths off WA.
Mr Buswell said he was unsure about what happened to the request but was keen to revisit it given how attacks were affecting people's lives and the economy more broadly.
Taking great white sharks off the list would allow them to be hunted. Under current arrangements, the State can order the capture and destruction of great whites only if they present an "imminent" safety risk.
Federal Environment Minister Greg Hunt agreed that human life "has to be paramount" and said he would work with WA to see what could be done about reducing the risks of attack.
Mr Hunt would not say if he supported the removal of great white shark's protected status.
