❓ Hon Robin Chapple questions the Minister for Local Government regarding the potential closure of the Port Hedland Cemetery, focusing on the commissioner's actions, heritage considerations, and future management.
AnsweredQoN 1001Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
PORT HEDLAND CEMETERY
1001. Hon ROBIN CHAPPLE to the Leader of the House
representing the Minister for Local Government:
I
refer to the operations of the Port Hedland council under the commissioner and
the CEO David Pentz; the document titled ''Late Item —
Ordinary Meeting of Council — Agenda'', dated 28 August 2019,
item 14.3, ''Closure of Port Hedland Cemetery (File No. 05/08/0011)'';
and the letter at attachment 1 to item 14.3 dated 19 August 2019 from the
commissioner to CEO David Pentz.
(1) Why is the commissioner
revoking a unanimous decision of the former councillors?
(2) Why did the
commissioner write the letter of 19 August 2019 to the CEO seeking closure of
the cemetery prior to receiving the report identified in agenda item 14.3, ''Closure
of Port Hedland Cemetery''?
(3) Is the
minister aware that the Port Hedland pioneer cemetery is a heritage site that
is yet to be assessed by the Aboriginal Cultural Material Committee?
(4) Will any
party seeking to change the cemetery's current status be required to
seek a section 18 application under the Aboriginal Heritage Act; and, if not,
why not?
(5) If the Port
Hedland Cemetery were to be closed for active burial, would the sites remain
available for special burial at the discretion of the minister?
(6) If the Port
Hedland Cemetery were to be closed for active burial, would the sites remain as
a historic graveyard under the management of the Town of Port Hedland council?
1001. Hon ROBIN CHAPPLE to the Leader of the House
representing the Minister for Local Government:
I
refer to the operations of the Port Hedland council under the commissioner and
the CEO David Pentz; the document titled ''Late Item —
Ordinary Meeting of Council — Agenda'', dated 28 August 2019,
item 14.3, ''Closure of Port Hedland Cemetery (File No. 05/08/0011)'';
and the letter at attachment 1 to item 14.3 dated 19 August 2019 from the
commissioner to CEO David Pentz.
(1) Why is the commissioner
revoking a unanimous decision of the former councillors?
(2) Why did the
commissioner write the letter of 19 August 2019 to the CEO seeking closure of
the cemetery prior to receiving the report identified in agenda item 14.3, ''Closure
of Port Hedland Cemetery''?
(3) Is the
minister aware that the Port Hedland pioneer cemetery is a heritage site that
is yet to be assessed by the Aboriginal Cultural Material Committee?
(4) Will any
party seeking to change the cemetery's current status be required to
seek a section 18 application under the Aboriginal Heritage Act; and, if not,
why not?
(5) If the Port
Hedland Cemetery were to be closed for active burial, would the sites remain
available for special burial at the discretion of the minister?
(6) If the Port
Hedland Cemetery were to be closed for active burial, would the sites remain as
a historic graveyard under the management of the Town of Port Hedland council?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1)–(2) This is a matter
for the Town of Port Hedland.
(3)–(4) This is a matter
for the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs.
(5) The minister is able to approve
a burial under section 12 of the Cemeteries Act 1986.
(6) If the
cemetery is closed under section 4 of the Cemeteries Act 1986, the care,
control and management of the closed
cemetery will generally be vested, under section 43, in the body responsible
for its management prior to its closure.
some notice of the question.
(1)–(2) This is a matter
for the Town of Port Hedland.
(3)–(4) This is a matter
for the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs.
(5) The minister is able to approve
a burial under section 12 of the Cemeteries Act 1986.
(6) If the
cemetery is closed under section 4 of the Cemeteries Act 1986, the care,
control and management of the closed
cemetery will generally be vested, under section 43, in the body responsible
for its management prior to its closure.
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.