❓ Hon Martin Aldridge questions the Minister for Regional Development regarding the Mobile Black Spot Program, specifically the state government's involvement and funding commitment. The Minister's response is highly critical of the federal government's handling of the program and lack of consultation with WA.
AnsweredQoN 281Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
MOBILE BLACK SPOT
PROGRAM — PRIORITY LOCATIONS
281. Hon MARTIN ALDRIDGE to the Minister for Regional Development:
I refer to the federal government's
announcement last week that 125 priority locations will be funded by the
federal government's Mobile Black Spot Program.
(1) Did the state
government submit priority locations to the federal government?
(2) Did the state
government offer to commit any new funding for this announcement?
(3) Has the
minister contacted the federal Minister for Communications or the federal
Minister for Regional Telecommunications to discuss priority blackspot areas in
Western Australia this year?
(4) If yes to
(3), please provide dates of contact.
PROGRAM — PRIORITY LOCATIONS
281. Hon MARTIN ALDRIDGE to the Minister for Regional Development:
I refer to the federal government's
announcement last week that 125 priority locations will be funded by the
federal government's Mobile Black Spot Program.
(1) Did the state
government submit priority locations to the federal government?
(2) Did the state
government offer to commit any new funding for this announcement?
(3) Has the
minister contacted the federal Minister for Communications or the federal
Minister for Regional Telecommunications to discuss priority blackspot areas in
Western Australia this year?
(4) If yes to
(3), please provide dates of contact.
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(4) Well,
come in, spinner! I have been hoping you might ask a question like this,
because this is a demonstration that the federal National Party has no interest
in Western Australia. In fact, member, that list of priorities, those seven out
of 125 sites—that is all we were getting—were actually
announced unilaterally by the Turnbull government in all its marginal seats
during the 2016 election. I can assure the member that absolutely there is no
way that our government will be chipping in to fund Malcolm Turnbull's
election commitments. We are not intending, in fact, to be in a position of
being required, without any consultation whatsoever, to participate in a program.
This is a completely different process from any that was adopted before. I believe
that all the other states are of the same view. These were election commitments
and they are going to be funded. Indeed, yes, I did write to Hon Fiona Nash,
who was the minister and I believe one of your National Party colleagues at the
time when she was thought just to be an Australian, and I did express my
concern about the very paltry share of the pie that we were getting here in WA.
I asked her for clarification on those funding arrangements, and guess what? We
never, ever got a reply. We understand that the National Party has had a bit of
a problem keeping its members in federal Parliament, but we do not apologise
for the fact that we have no intention of pouring money into a scheme in which
we have no ability to be part of that decision-making. The department formally
sent a document to the federal minister, outlining our concerns about those
particular proposals and pointing out that these were not the priorities that
had been established in Western Australia.
come in, spinner! I have been hoping you might ask a question like this,
because this is a demonstration that the federal National Party has no interest
in Western Australia. In fact, member, that list of priorities, those seven out
of 125 sites—that is all we were getting—were actually
announced unilaterally by the Turnbull government in all its marginal seats
during the 2016 election. I can assure the member that absolutely there is no
way that our government will be chipping in to fund Malcolm Turnbull's
election commitments. We are not intending, in fact, to be in a position of
being required, without any consultation whatsoever, to participate in a program.
This is a completely different process from any that was adopted before. I believe
that all the other states are of the same view. These were election commitments
and they are going to be funded. Indeed, yes, I did write to Hon Fiona Nash,
who was the minister and I believe one of your National Party colleagues at the
time when she was thought just to be an Australian, and I did express my
concern about the very paltry share of the pie that we were getting here in WA.
I asked her for clarification on those funding arrangements, and guess what? We
never, ever got a reply. We understand that the National Party has had a bit of
a problem keeping its members in federal Parliament, but we do not apologise
for the fact that we have no intention of pouring money into a scheme in which
we have no ability to be part of that decision-making. The department formally
sent a document to the federal minister, outlining our concerns about those
particular proposals and pointing out that these were not the priorities that
had been established in Western Australia.
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