PASTORAL LEASES — RENT
740. Hon ROBIN SCOTT to the minister representing the
Treasurer:
New pastoral lease rents in my
electorate took effect from 1 July 2019. Many of my constituents have been
subjected to extreme increases in their rent, and in some cases as high as 550
per cent.
(1) Can the
minister identify any other public fee or charge, ever, which attracted an
increase of more than 500 per cent?
(2) In a statement on 26 June 2018, the minister
acknowledged the rent review process was imperfect and that he was
reviewing the situation. What steps has the minister taken exactly to review
the situation since?
(3) Will the minister
acknowledge that in our current system, the more profitable our business, the
more rent we have to pay, which acts as a complete disincentive for our
pastoral industry to grow into the future?
Hon
STEPHEN DAWSON replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question. The following information has been provided to me
by the Treasurer.
(1) This question
is too broad to provide a definitive answer, given the thousands of various
government fees and charges.
(2) An
administrative change aimed at improving the ability of pastoralists to conduct
forward financial planning is being considered as part of the pastoral lands
reform. More substantial change will require consultation with industry
stakeholders and the state government.
(3) The valuation undertaken by the
Valuer-General is based on unimproved ground rental.