❓ Freight rail network 15. Mr Kevin Michel to the Minister for Transport : I refer to the Cook Labor government's record of protecting the Western Australian economy and creating new local jobs. (1) Can
AnsweredQoN 15Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Freight rail network
15. Mr Kevin Michel to the Minister for Transport :
I
refer to the Cook Labor government's record of protecting the Western
Australian economy and creating new local jobs.
(1) Can the minister update the house on the Cook
Labor government's decision to enter negotiations to secure control of the WA
freight rail network?
(2) Can the minister advise the house what
returning the freight rail network to public hands will mean for jobs, the
economy and regional communities?
15. Mr Kevin Michel to the Minister for Transport :
I
refer to the Cook Labor government's record of protecting the Western
Australian economy and creating new local jobs.
(1) Can the minister update the house on the Cook
Labor government's decision to enter negotiations to secure control of the WA
freight rail network?
(2) Can the minister advise the house what
returning the freight rail network to public hands will mean for jobs, the
economy and regional communities?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I thank the member for Pilbara for
the question. Of course, one of the key commitments that we gave during the
election was to make sure that we could enter into negotiations to bring back
the regional rail network into public control. There are a number of reasons
for it. One of the key reasons is to make sure that we can grow regional
communities and we can support investment throughout regional WA. Of course, it
was opposed by the Nationals WA and the Liberal Party, even though the Chamber
of Commerce and Industry of Western Australia, the Chamber of Minerals and
Energy of Western Australia, CBH Group and the farming community support
bringing back the regional rail network into public control. Why? It is because
it makes sense.
We need to support more freight
on rail for a number of reasons, including the economic growth of this state
and for regional road safety, which is another element, to make sure more
freight is on rail. That is why we need bipartisan support. Not only did the
opposition not support it, it tried to grossly inflate the figure, saying it
would cost $5 billion. This reflects the financial stupidity of the other side.
When the former government sold it, it sold a 50-year lease for $585 million
and now the opposition says it is worth $5 billion, jeopardising negotiations
and wanting the deal to fail. This is not just my view of the world; let us go
to former National Party members of this place, Max Trenorden and Phil Gardiner
who in Countryman this week were quoted as
saying:
… we welcome the
decision by the WA Labor to reopen discussions on the future of the grain
freight network, owned by … conglomerate Brookfield through its
subsidiary ARC Infrastructure.
These are National Party
members. They also said:
The history surrounding Liberal
and National governments' … sale of Westrail, the State's regional
passenger and freight network could only be described as gross commercial
incompetence, financial ineptitude and, regrettably, personal … point scoring.
This is them. They also said:
To add to this, certain shire
representatives on WA Local Government Association at the time, including
Liberal MLC Steve Martin, all failed to protect the interests of the people of
WA in terms of road safety, productivity gains and extracting value from a …
asset.
This was a failed privatisation
that has had an impact across the state. The opposition knows it; the opposition
knows it was a bad privatisation. We think it is time to fix the wrong of the
past, to get into negotiations and to see what we can do to make sure we
support the farmers, we support the resources sector, we get more freight on
rail and safer roads.
Mr Shane Love: What have you done to reform the
access code?
Ms Rita Saffioti: Let us go through this. Does the
member for Mid-West want to go through this? The lease that the former
government entered into has been described by—
Mr Shane Love interjected.
The Speaker: Leader!
Ms Rita Saffioti: The lease that the former government
entered into—
Mr Shane Love interjected.
The Speaker: Leader of the National Party!
Mr Shane Love interjected.
The Speaker: Leader
of the National Party!
Several members
interjected.
Ms Rita Saffioti: You take responsibility. The
National Party shut the rail lines and you have caused havoc on regional roads.
Accept responsibility and back this buyback.
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members!
Ms Rita Saffioti: You sit there. All you care about is
your office size and the amount of offices you have—the floorspace of
your office; that is all you care about. In eight years you have done nothing
on this issue—nothing! Take responsibility. It was the National Party
and the Liberal Party that privatised the rail network, and then in government
they shut down the rail lines. You shut down the rail lines and you have never
ever accepted that responsibility.
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members!
Ms Rita Saffioti: The lease you entered into is the
worst lease—
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members!
Mr Roger Cook interjected.
The Speaker: Premier!
Ms Rita Saffioti: The lease the former government
entered into has been described as the worst commercial lease ever. It gives
the state pretty much zero power. Then in government the Liberal and National
Parties sat around and closed those rail lines. Then the opposition comes in
here and talks about regional road safety. It was the former government's
closure of those rail lines, its privatisation, that has meant more freight on
roads. There is no doubt about that. That is the clear evidence. So there we
are trying to right the wrong of the past, and we would expect that the
Nationals WA, as guilty as anything, would say, "Do you know what? This is
a good idea. We need to back it because this is for regional communities",
and they cannot bring themselves to do it. Instead, you have the Liberal Party
trying to jeopardise the process. Of course, it had legislation. If it had been
up to the Liberal Party, Fremantle port would have been sold. It would have
been sold. The debate currently about Darwin port and the Liberal Party, I
mean, honestly, if it had been up to the previous government, it would have
sold Utah Point and Fremantle port would have gone. Western Power would have
gone.
The former
government sold that rail line. It has been disastrous in regional communities
and we want to fix that wrong. Do not jeopardise negotiations. I have a
question on notice from Hon Steve Martin, can you believe, the one that Max
Trenorden said stood by and let it all happen, asking for all the commercial
dealings. Honestly! He wants to jeopardise this because he is as guilty as the
National Party and the Liberal Party for selling off that rail line, for the
impact on regional WA, and we are out there to fix that wrong.
the question. Of course, one of the key commitments that we gave during the
election was to make sure that we could enter into negotiations to bring back
the regional rail network into public control. There are a number of reasons
for it. One of the key reasons is to make sure that we can grow regional
communities and we can support investment throughout regional WA. Of course, it
was opposed by the Nationals WA and the Liberal Party, even though the Chamber
of Commerce and Industry of Western Australia, the Chamber of Minerals and
Energy of Western Australia, CBH Group and the farming community support
bringing back the regional rail network into public control. Why? It is because
it makes sense.
We need to support more freight
on rail for a number of reasons, including the economic growth of this state
and for regional road safety, which is another element, to make sure more
freight is on rail. That is why we need bipartisan support. Not only did the
opposition not support it, it tried to grossly inflate the figure, saying it
would cost $5 billion. This reflects the financial stupidity of the other side.
When the former government sold it, it sold a 50-year lease for $585 million
and now the opposition says it is worth $5 billion, jeopardising negotiations
and wanting the deal to fail. This is not just my view of the world; let us go
to former National Party members of this place, Max Trenorden and Phil Gardiner
who in Countryman this week were quoted as
saying:
… we welcome the
decision by the WA Labor to reopen discussions on the future of the grain
freight network, owned by … conglomerate Brookfield through its
subsidiary ARC Infrastructure.
These are National Party
members. They also said:
The history surrounding Liberal
and National governments' … sale of Westrail, the State's regional
passenger and freight network could only be described as gross commercial
incompetence, financial ineptitude and, regrettably, personal … point scoring.
This is them. They also said:
To add to this, certain shire
representatives on WA Local Government Association at the time, including
Liberal MLC Steve Martin, all failed to protect the interests of the people of
WA in terms of road safety, productivity gains and extracting value from a …
asset.
This was a failed privatisation
that has had an impact across the state. The opposition knows it; the opposition
knows it was a bad privatisation. We think it is time to fix the wrong of the
past, to get into negotiations and to see what we can do to make sure we
support the farmers, we support the resources sector, we get more freight on
rail and safer roads.
Mr Shane Love: What have you done to reform the
access code?
Ms Rita Saffioti: Let us go through this. Does the
member for Mid-West want to go through this? The lease that the former
government entered into has been described by—
Mr Shane Love interjected.
The Speaker: Leader!
Ms Rita Saffioti: The lease that the former government
entered into—
Mr Shane Love interjected.
The Speaker: Leader of the National Party!
Mr Shane Love interjected.
The Speaker: Leader
of the National Party!
Several members
interjected.
Ms Rita Saffioti: You take responsibility. The
National Party shut the rail lines and you have caused havoc on regional roads.
Accept responsibility and back this buyback.
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members!
Ms Rita Saffioti: You sit there. All you care about is
your office size and the amount of offices you have—the floorspace of
your office; that is all you care about. In eight years you have done nothing
on this issue—nothing! Take responsibility. It was the National Party
and the Liberal Party that privatised the rail network, and then in government
they shut down the rail lines. You shut down the rail lines and you have never
ever accepted that responsibility.
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members!
Ms Rita Saffioti: The lease you entered into is the
worst lease—
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members!
Mr Roger Cook interjected.
The Speaker: Premier!
Ms Rita Saffioti: The lease the former government
entered into has been described as the worst commercial lease ever. It gives
the state pretty much zero power. Then in government the Liberal and National
Parties sat around and closed those rail lines. Then the opposition comes in
here and talks about regional road safety. It was the former government's
closure of those rail lines, its privatisation, that has meant more freight on
roads. There is no doubt about that. That is the clear evidence. So there we
are trying to right the wrong of the past, and we would expect that the
Nationals WA, as guilty as anything, would say, "Do you know what? This is
a good idea. We need to back it because this is for regional communities",
and they cannot bring themselves to do it. Instead, you have the Liberal Party
trying to jeopardise the process. Of course, it had legislation. If it had been
up to the Liberal Party, Fremantle port would have been sold. It would have
been sold. The debate currently about Darwin port and the Liberal Party, I
mean, honestly, if it had been up to the previous government, it would have
sold Utah Point and Fremantle port would have gone. Western Power would have
gone.
The former
government sold that rail line. It has been disastrous in regional communities
and we want to fix that wrong. Do not jeopardise negotiations. I have a
question on notice from Hon Steve Martin, can you believe, the one that Max
Trenorden said stood by and let it all happen, asking for all the commercial
dealings. Honestly! He wants to jeopardise this because he is as guilty as the
National Party and the Liberal Party for selling off that rail line, for the
impact on regional WA, and we are out there to fix that wrong.
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.