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Parliamentary Questions


Question Without Notice No. 165 asked in the Legislative Council on 26 May 2021 by Hon Neil Thomson

Parliament: 41 Session: 1

DUST MANAGEMENT — BUYBACK SCHEME — PORT HEDLAND

165. Hon NEIL THOMSON to the Leader of the House representing the Minister for Ports:

I refer to the compensation scheme for home owners of Port Hedland's dust-affected West End.

Why does the state use a fixed price on which to base its compensation when the normal approach would be to use an unencumbered existing valuation plus, where appropriate, a solatium to compensate landowners when it seeks to acquire those properties, either voluntarily or compulsorily?

Hon SUE ELLERY replied:

I thank the honourable member for some notice of the question.

The Port Hedland voluntary buyback scheme is not a compensation scheme, nor is it designed to provide compensation for changes in market value that have occurred over time. The PHVBS is to provide a voluntary option for owners of residential dwellings within the area of land between Taplin Street and the port in the West End of Port Hedland to secure a guaranteed settlement price following the introduction of rezoning related to the Port Hedland West End Improvement Scheme No 1—IS1. Participation in this scheme is voluntary.

The valuation date was set as 6 August 2019, as it was when the Minister for Regional Development first publicly indicated that the state government would consider how an industry-funded PHVBS could operate. The 6 August 2019 date for valuation was accepted after investigations found there was no other date that would distinguish the West End from the east end of Port Hedland and other Pilbara locations.

The PHVBS offer is not a fixed price. At the time the offer is made, eligible residential property owners will be offered a settlement price calculated as follows: the agreed market value of the property as at 6 August 2019 indexed, a premium of 35 per cent of the agreed market value and an amount of up to $20 000 for verifiable transaction costs.