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Parliamentary Questions


Question On Notice No. 89 asked in the Legislative Council on 6 May 2021 by Hon Tjorn Sibma

Question Directed to the: Minister for Mental Health representing the Minister for Environment
Parliament: 41 Session: 1


Question

I refer to accusations of systemic waste levy avoidance in Western Australia, and I ask:
(a) can the Minister please advise the number of occasions over the previous four years that the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) either received complaints about, or were alerted to, well-founded suspicions about the practice of system waste levy avoidance;
(b) on which specific dates were these complaints/suspicions brought to DWER's attention; and
(c) with respect to (b), what follow-up action occurred, if any?

Answered on 2 June 2021

(a)      39

(b)       

YEAR

DATE

2017

23 May

25 May

16 June

21 June

24 June

26 June

5 September

6 November

2018

28 March

17 April

18 May

24 May

31 May

31 August

5 September

9 November

2019

24 January

14 March

29 May

6 June (two complaints)

21 June

6 August (two complaints)

12 August

30 August

3 September

10 September

9 October

30 October

27 November

2 December

2020

24 January

27 March

20 April

4 August

3 November

2021

27 January

28  April

(c)   Complaints and suspicions about waste levy avoidance form part of the intelligence that the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation receives and evaluates.  This intelligence is collected from a range of sources including the waste industry.  The Department’s Authorised Officers and Inspectors use both overt and covert contemporary investigation techniques to gather evidence under the legislation that it administers.  Joint investigations with other law enforcement agencies, including WA Police, have been, and will continue to be carried out where intelligence indicates that illegal activity may extend beyond waste levy offences.  If sufficient evidence is secured to demonstrate a prima facie case that an offence has been committed, enforcement action is taken in accordance with the Department’s Compliance and Enforcement Policy.  When information provided by a complainant does not result in enforcement action, it is retained and recorded for intelligence purposes.

The Department is currently investigating allegations of waste levy evasion, however it would not be appropriate to comment on these ongoing investigations.