Up to now, statutory responsibility for nature conservation generally is not vested in any single Minister of State. The purpose of section 11 (1) is to give the Minister for Lands overall statutory responsibility for wildlife conservation and in subsections (2) and (3) to indicate specifically the main authority. The effect of subsections (2) and (3) will also be to provide a statutory basis for many of the Forest and Wildlife Service's existing game and wildlife activities, for example, providing grants, giving technical advice, conducting research, and so on.
Heretofore, the funds for these services were made available under subheads G, Game Development, and H, Conservation, of the Forestry Vote but the only statutory basis for the expenditure was the annual Appropriation Act. The general and specific powers in section 11 will enable these and various other activities to be developed and expanded.
Subsection (3) (b) is an important provision enabling the Minister, either directly or with others, to engage in publicity and propaganda aimed at educating public opinion and maintaining public awareness and concern for wildlife conservation. The success of a Bill such as the present one may well depend as much, if not more, on public education as on enforcement. The educational role of the Minister will thus be a very broad one, aimed at the public generally through the use of films, exhibitions, handouts, lectures, and so on. It will not be directly concerned with education in the formal sense; this will continue to be the responsibility of the Minister for Education.
