❓ Mr. Redman questions the Minister for Emergency Services regarding a planning decision by the Minister for Planning in Mt Helena, where advice from the Department of Fire and Emergency Services was allegedly disregarded. The Minister for Emergency Services states he was not consulted and supports the Minister for Planning's decision.
AnsweredQoN 50Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
PLANNING —BUSHFIRE
MANAGEMENT — MT HELENA
50. Mr D.T. REDMAN to the Minister for Emergency Services:
I refer to the decision by the
minister's cabinet colleague, the Minister for Planning, to reject the
advice of the Department of Fire and Emergency Services and issue a rezoning
approval for an area deemed an extreme fire risk in Mt Helena.
(1) Did the
Minister for Planning consult the minister before rejecting the prudent advice
of his agency, and does he support her decision?
(2) Does the
minister agree with the advice his department provided to the Minister for
Planning; and, if not, why not?
MANAGEMENT — MT HELENA
50. Mr D.T. REDMAN to the Minister for Emergency Services:
I refer to the decision by the
minister's cabinet colleague, the Minister for Planning, to reject the
advice of the Department of Fire and Emergency Services and issue a rezoning
approval for an area deemed an extreme fire risk in Mt Helena.
(1) Did the
Minister for Planning consult the minister before rejecting the prudent advice
of his agency, and does he support her decision?
(2) Does the
minister agree with the advice his department provided to the Minister for
Planning; and, if not, why not?
AnswerView source ↗
Thank you very much, member for
Warren–Blackwood, for those questions.
(1)–(2) No.
The minister did not consult me beforehand because I have no role in the
decision-making process. The Minister for Planning is the decision-making
process, and the Department of Fire and Emergency Services has an advisory role
only. It does not have to provide me with any information about it. If it sees
fit, it provides information to the Western Australian Planning Commission,
which in turn provides advice to the minister. The minister made the decision.
However, the minister and I have spoken about this, and the minister has
explained to me exactly what she explained to the house about the nature of
this development. She explained the history of this development to me. She has
explained to me the support of the local shire for this development. I have
been through that and looked on Google maps at —
Mr D.T. Redman : Do you agree
with the advice of your department?
Mr F.M. LOGAN : I am just
trying to answer the question for you, mate.
I have been on Google maps. I have taken the information from
the minister. I have looked at the access and egress for emergency vehicles.
Once the 20 or so blocks that will come out of this development are approved by
the shire, constraints, restrictions and requests will be put on those homeowners
as soon as they build their building. As far as I am concerned, the minister
has made the call and she has made probably the right call.
Warren–Blackwood, for those questions.
(1)–(2) No.
The minister did not consult me beforehand because I have no role in the
decision-making process. The Minister for Planning is the decision-making
process, and the Department of Fire and Emergency Services has an advisory role
only. It does not have to provide me with any information about it. If it sees
fit, it provides information to the Western Australian Planning Commission,
which in turn provides advice to the minister. The minister made the decision.
However, the minister and I have spoken about this, and the minister has
explained to me exactly what she explained to the house about the nature of
this development. She explained the history of this development to me. She has
explained to me the support of the local shire for this development. I have
been through that and looked on Google maps at —
Mr D.T. Redman : Do you agree
with the advice of your department?
Mr F.M. LOGAN : I am just
trying to answer the question for you, mate.
I have been on Google maps. I have taken the information from
the minister. I have looked at the access and egress for emergency vehicles.
Once the 20 or so blocks that will come out of this development are approved by
the shire, constraints, restrictions and requests will be put on those homeowners
as soon as they build their building. As far as I am concerned, the minister
has made the call and she has made probably the right call.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.