DOWERIN TRAIN STATION —
DEMOLITION
383. Mr R.S. LOVE to the Minister for Transport:
I refer to the demolition of
Dowerin train station, which commenced this week on 13 June.
(1) As notice of the demolition was given only on 6 June,
can the minister detail what community consultation was done on this
decision and when?
(2) Can the minister detail why the
Public Transport Authority demolished this asset?
Ms R.
SAFFIOTI replied:
(1)–(2) I
am afraid I do not have all the information in front of me, but let us talk
about regional rail for a second. I will get to the information, member. Let us
talk about regional rail, shall we? Shall we talk about a party that sold off
regional rail freight in Western Australia?
Several members
interjected.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI: Let us talk
about that. Let us talk about the Nationals WA that has constantly turned its
back on regional Western Australians. Let us talk about a National Party that
privatised regional rail and then went and shut lines just to top it off.
Point of Order
Dr D.J.
HONEY: I know sometimes there is some latitude, but this answer has
nothing whatsoever to do with the question asked by the member for Moore.
The
SPEAKER: That is your opinion. I am not upholding that point of
order. I ask the minister to answer the question. The question relates to
regional rail.
Questions without Notice Resumed
Ms
R. SAFFIOTI: I will go through
it. Let us talk about a party that sold it off and then shut it down. Now we
are there working. I met
representatives from some regional councils this week and from Co-operative
Bulk Handling Ltd to talk
about what we need to do to work together to reverse the undoing of regional
rail that members opposite commenced. I remember winning government in 2017 and
the Leader of the Opposition —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER: Order, please!
Deputy Leader of the Opposition, at this stage you are going to be getting the opportunity to ask a supplementary question. This
is going to be a very long answer if we get continued interjections from
your side, and if we do that, you will forgo your opportunity to ask a supplementary.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI: I remember
one of the first decisions I had to make when I was minister in 2017 when we
won government. The PTA came and told me all the decisions that were made by
the previous government. One was to shut down the AvonLink and to
replace it with buses.
Mr P. Papalia interjected.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI: No, it was
its decision as a coalition government. Its decision was to shut the AvonLink.
The first thing I had to do was to beg in a time
of very tight budget considerations to reverse that decision because I said
I was not going to be a Minister for Transport who shut rail services. After
the National Party sold Westrail Freight, shut rail lines, it was going to shut
down the AvonLink.
Mr R.S. Love interjected.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI: It was true.
I am not going to be lectured about rail by the National Party in this state. I
am not going to be lectured by the National
Party on anything to do with regional WA. Where is the Leader of the Opposition
because she was —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER: Order, please!
Ms
R. SAFFIOTI: The Leader of the
Opposition—unfortunately, she is not here today and was not here
yesterday—in cabinet endorsed the decision to shut the AvonLink.
As I understand, notice was given in
relation to the Dowerin train station. I am looking at the post here in
relation to works being undertaken at the Dowerin train station. The member
should not come in here and say that no notice was given when he knows notice
was given.