The federal government will spend $5 million redeploying shark drumlines and improving swimmer safety in the Great Barrier Reef.

Environment Minister Sussan Ley tells Alan Jones the reintroduction of drumlines, and upgrade to ‘SMART’ devices, will take place within a fortnight.

“Queensland will move to pretty much what New South Wales has.

“A SMART drumline catches a shark, it then signals there’s a shark on the line, those lines get inspected perhaps every day, perhaps every two days, somebody tags and releases the shark as required, but always putting human safety first.”

27 drumlines and 160 shark nets along the north Queensland coast were removed in September last year after the state government lost a legal battle with an animal rights group, leaving 20 of the Great Barrier Reef’s most popular beaches unprotected.

The Environment Minister also hit back at ‘animal liberation’ activists politicising environmental issues like the bushfire crisis, suggesting they need to listen to the affected regional communities.

“I would like some people who don’t understand the reality of fires and the environment and vegetation management to actually just come and talk.

“It doesn’t have to be a political bunfight.”

Click PLAY below to hear the full interview

Image: Getty/Brandi Mueller