❓ Mr Grylls questions the Minister for Environment on WA's refusal to sign the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality, potentially losing $173 million in Commonwealth funding. The Minister responds by highlighting ongoing state-funded initiatives and efforts to negotiate a smaller funding agreement with the Commonwealth.
AnsweredQoN 916Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Once again I refer to the Government’s refusal to sign the $158 million National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality. Given that the federal Government was forced to give to New South Wales the $15 million that Western Australia refused to match under the FarmBis program, will the minister now finally concede that she has no intention of matching the $158 million on offer under the national action plan, which will deprive Western Australia of a total of $173 million in matching commonwealth funding? Dr J.M. EDWARDS
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for the question. Cabinet recently resolved to again write to the Prime Minister saying that we urgently want to match the $20 million of funding that the Prime Minister had said in a letter to the State the Commonwealth found acceptable. That letter was sent to the Prime Minister, but we have had no response. We are very keen to continue negotiations with the Commonwealth. We are keen to tackle this issue and be on top of it. I am delighted to inform the Parliament that despite the Commonwealth ignoring us, work goes on. We recently advertised for projects under the engineering evaluation initiative. Sixty-two projects are being assessed. The assessment team is travelling around to look at those proposals and determine which ones will get a guernsey to proceed. In addition, we have signed memorandums of understanding with the regional natural resource management groups to ensure that we work very closely with them and that their plans continue to line up with the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality so that the door is kept open for the Commonwealth. We have just closed applications for the catchment demonstration initiative. The group assessing those has short-listed about six and is visiting those projects. We will shortly have good news about that. Although the Commonwealth dawdles and makes idle promises that it never keeps, we are rolling out our money. We are working with it through the Natural Heritage Trust and we are seeing progress on the ground.
Dr J.M. EDWARDS replied: I thank the member for the question. Cabinet recently resolved to again write to the Prime Minister saying that we urgently want to match the $20 million of funding that the Prime Minister had said in a letter to the State the Commonwealth found acceptable. That letter was sent to the Prime Minister, but we have had no response. We are very keen to continue negotiations with the Commonwealth. We are keen to tackle this issue and be on top of it. I am delighted to inform the Parliament that despite the Commonwealth ignoring us, work goes on. We recently advertised for projects under the engineering evaluation initiative. Sixty-two projects are being assessed. The assessment team is travelling around to look at those proposals and determine which ones will get a guernsey to proceed. In addition, we have signed memorandums of understanding with the regional natural resource management groups to ensure that we work very closely with them and that their plans continue to line up with the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality so that the door is kept open for the Commonwealth. We have just closed applications for the catchment demonstration initiative. The group assessing those has short-listed about six and is visiting those projects. We will shortly have good news about that. Although the Commonwealth dawdles and makes idle promises that it never keeps, we are rolling out our money. We are working with it through the Natural Heritage Trust and we are seeing progress on the ground.
I thank the member for the question. Cabinet recently resolved to again write to the Prime Minister saying that we urgently want to match the $20 million of funding that the Prime Minister had said in a letter to the State the Commonwealth found acceptable. That letter was sent to the Prime Minister, but we have had no response. We are very keen to continue negotiations with the Commonwealth. We are keen to tackle this issue and be on top of it. I am delighted to inform the Parliament that despite the Commonwealth ignoring us, work goes on. We recently advertised for projects under the engineering evaluation initiative. Sixty-two projects are being assessed. The assessment team is travelling around to look at those proposals and determine which ones will get a guernsey to proceed. In addition, we have signed memorandums of understanding with the regional natural resource management groups to ensure that we work very closely with them and that their plans continue to line up with the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality so that the door is kept open for the Commonwealth. We have just closed applications for the catchment demonstration initiative. The group assessing those has short-listed about six and is visiting those projects. We will shortly have good news about that. Although the Commonwealth dawdles and makes idle promises that it never keeps, we are rolling out our money. We are working with it through the Natural Heritage Trust and we are seeing progress on the ground.
Dr J.M. EDWARDS replied: I thank the member for the question. Cabinet recently resolved to again write to the Prime Minister saying that we urgently want to match the $20 million of funding that the Prime Minister had said in a letter to the State the Commonwealth found acceptable. That letter was sent to the Prime Minister, but we have had no response. We are very keen to continue negotiations with the Commonwealth. We are keen to tackle this issue and be on top of it. I am delighted to inform the Parliament that despite the Commonwealth ignoring us, work goes on. We recently advertised for projects under the engineering evaluation initiative. Sixty-two projects are being assessed. The assessment team is travelling around to look at those proposals and determine which ones will get a guernsey to proceed. In addition, we have signed memorandums of understanding with the regional natural resource management groups to ensure that we work very closely with them and that their plans continue to line up with the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality so that the door is kept open for the Commonwealth. We have just closed applications for the catchment demonstration initiative. The group assessing those has short-listed about six and is visiting those projects. We will shortly have good news about that. Although the Commonwealth dawdles and makes idle promises that it never keeps, we are rolling out our money. We are working with it through the Natural Heritage Trust and we are seeing progress on the ground.
I thank the member for the question. Cabinet recently resolved to again write to the Prime Minister saying that we urgently want to match the $20 million of funding that the Prime Minister had said in a letter to the State the Commonwealth found acceptable. That letter was sent to the Prime Minister, but we have had no response. We are very keen to continue negotiations with the Commonwealth. We are keen to tackle this issue and be on top of it. I am delighted to inform the Parliament that despite the Commonwealth ignoring us, work goes on. We recently advertised for projects under the engineering evaluation initiative. Sixty-two projects are being assessed. The assessment team is travelling around to look at those proposals and determine which ones will get a guernsey to proceed. In addition, we have signed memorandums of understanding with the regional natural resource management groups to ensure that we work very closely with them and that their plans continue to line up with the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality so that the door is kept open for the Commonwealth. We have just closed applications for the catchment demonstration initiative. The group assessing those has short-listed about six and is visiting those projects. We will shortly have good news about that. Although the Commonwealth dawdles and makes idle promises that it never keeps, we are rolling out our money. We are working with it through the Natural Heritage Trust and we are seeing progress on the ground.
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