Premier Tony Wakeham is standing behind his government’s decision to pull out of an MOU for a national marine conservation area on the south coast.

Wakeham believes cancelling the community-led agreement was the “right move at this time,” noting that he is open to sitting down with the federal government to discuss how national conservation areas could be developed in the future.

When asked why not go ahead with the feasibility study, which would not lock any party in to any decisions, Wakeham points to the concerns he heard from residents.

He says there were a lot of concerns raised by people who depend on the fishery and aquaculture industries, and government needed to “eliminate that doubt.”