LAND
ADMINISTRATION ACT — REFORM
800. Ms L. DALTON to the Minister for Lands:
I refer to the McGowan Labor
government's commitment to driving economic development in Western Australia
and diversifying the state's economy.
(1) Can the
minister outline to the house how this government's reforms to the Land
Administration Act will deliver greater opportunities for investment in
renewable energy and carbon farming?
(2) Can the minister advise the
house what these reforms will mean for native title holders?
Dr A.D.
BUTI replied:
(1)–(2) I
thank the member for Geraldton, a very positive member from the regions, unlike
some of the members over the other side. I thank her for that question.
Several members
interjected.
The SPEAKER: Order,
please, members! I know you are all very entertained with your own comments,
but I would like to hear from the minister.
Dr A.D. BUTI: Members, I cannot
overstate the significance of the proposed reforms to the Land Administration
Act. These are reforms that multiple governments over many, many decades
have sought to address, and it is only the McGowan government that has come up
with a reform package that we believe is appropriate to go forward to try to
reach our zero emissions date by 2050. I would like to thank the Minister for
Environment; Climate Action for her support with regard to these reforms.
As we know, Western Australia is a very
vast landscape and we have a vast expanse of unallocated crown land and
pastoral lands, but unfortunately under the act, pastoral leases can only be
used for pastoral activity. As the Leader of the Opposition would know, Terry
Redman, Minister for Lands under the previous administration, tried to bring in reforms but was unsuccessful, but we
believe we will be very successful because we have followed a very careful
process and will continue with our consultation in this area. Some of the
reforms that we seek to do with the changes
to the Land Administration Act are to ensure there is a diversification lease
in the act that will allow this vast array of land to be used for
purposes other than livestock grazing. In other words, we can use it for
renewable energy sources. It will be economically beneficial for pastoralists,
and will also provide opportunities for traditional owners to engage in
ecological tourism. It will also provide great opportunities for hydrogen, wind
and carbon farming. These are initiatives
that will also diversify our economy. It was either the member for Moore or the
member for Cottesloe who brought a motion of public importance about a month
ago to say that we need to diversify our economy.
These amendments will go towards that, so when we introduce this legislation
into this place, we of course will be expecting their full support. This
is a government that takes seriously the challenges going forward, whether they
are in regard to diversifying the economy or ensuring that pastoralists have a viable
plan going forward.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER: Order, please,
members!
Dr A.D. BUTI: Other measures
that we are looking at in regard to these amendments are not just a diversification
lease but also changes to the rent methodology to ensure that we reduce the
volatility in that process. Hopefully, if members have been listening to
pastoralists, they will understand that they are very concerned about the
volatility in the rent that they pay for their pastoral leases. We will be
working on that and linking it to the consumer price index to be reviewed every
10 years. We will also be looking at the opportunity to extend leases up to 50 years,
which is incredibly important, so that pastoralists will be able to apply for
commonwealth funding in regard to renewable projects. These amendments have
been long asked for and only this government will deliver them.