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About the bill 

On 22 May 2024, Mr Shane Knuth MP, Member for Hill, introduced the Crocodile Control and Conservation Bill 2024 into the Queensland Parliament and referred it to the Health, Environment and Agriculture Committee for examination. The committee is required to report on its examination of the Bill within 6 months of its introduction.   

View: Explanatory speech 
View: Bill 
View: Explanatory Notes 
View: Statement of compatibility 

On 1 July 2024, the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly made a ruling that the Bill is out of order and will need to be discharged and withdrawn. In view of the Speaker's ruling, the committee has resolved not to continue its inquiry into the Bill.

View: Speaker’s Ruling

The Bill aims to eliminate from state waterways any crocodiles that pose a threat to human life, while continuing to protect crocodiles from becoming extinct as a species. 

The Bill would establish a Queensland Crocodile Authority to be based in Cairns and appoint a director of the authority with the following functions:

1. to take measures to minimise injuries and deaths caused by crocodiles in the State
2. to authorise persons, in any part of the State, to operate a crocodile farm, or a crocodile sanctuary
3. to decide the number of crocodile eggs that may be harvested each year in any part of the State
4. to authorise persons to harvest crocodile eggs in any part of the State
5. to decide the number of crocodiles that may be culled each year in any part of the State
6. to authorise persons to carry out the culling of crocodiles in any part of the State
7. to authorise persons to, for the prompt management of crocodiles, kill or relocate crocodiles in any part of the State
8. for Aboriginal land or Torres Strait Islander land—to authorise the owner of the land to—
   1. kill crocodiles on the land, or
   2. allow other persons to kill crocodiles on the land, for payment of a fee or free of charge, or
   3. relocate crocodiles on the land to a crocodile sanctuary or crocodile farm, or
   4. harvest crocodile eggs on the land, or
   5. otherwise manage crocodiles on the land
9. for State leasehold land or other land that is not State land—to authorise a person to, with the consent of the owner of the land, enter the land to—
   1. kill crocodiles on the land, or
   2. relocate relocate crocodiles on the land to a crocodile sanctuary or crocodile farm,
   3. harvest crocodile eggs on the land
10. to authorise persons to otherwise display, interact with, keep, or use crocodiles or crocodile eggs in any part of the State
11. if requested by the owner of land, to authorise a person to remove a crocodile from the land
12. to ensure the carcasses of all crocodiles killed under an authorisation granted by the director are dealt with so that, as far as practicable, no part of a carcass is wasted
13. to refer the suspected commission of offences relating to crocodiles or crocodile eggs to the police service
14. to coordinate research into, and the routine surveying of crocodile, and crocodile egg, numbers and distribution in the State
15. to promote the farming of crocodiles and the harvesting of crocodile eggs in the State
16. to investigate viability of the use of State land to farm crocodiles or as crocodile sanctuaries
17. to declare and manage crocodile sanctuaries and populated waterways
18. to make recommendations to the Legislative Assembly about crocodile management in the State
19. to manage the authority’s affairs.

The Bill provides that, in carrying out these functions, director must: 

• consult with Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islander peoples with regard to the Aboriginal tradition or Island custom in relation to land, and potential economic or social benefits of actions for the Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islander peoples
• not do anything the director reasonably believes will cause, or is likely to cause, the population size of crocodiles to decline to such an extent that crocodiles are in danger of extinction.

The Bill would require the director to review the Queensland Crocodile Management Plan, within 6 months of commencement, with the purpose of establishing a ‘zero-tolerance zone’ in the plan.

The Bill also provides for an advisory committee to be established to advise the director in the performance of the director’s functions, and for the director to report annually to the Minister about the authority’s operations. 

Further information

Further information including written briefings, correspondence, transcripts and tabled papers are available under the Related Publications tab.

PUBLIC PROCEEDINGS

The committee held a public briefing on the Bill on Friday, 21 June 2024. 

Timeline

Public briefing:      Friday, 21 June 2024 - Program - Broadcast - Transcript