Mr. Wyatt questions the land transfer to a private company nominated by the Nyiyaparli people, citing lack of due diligence. Mr. Grylls defends the government's actions, stating they acted on the Nyiyaparli's request and will ensure the original intentions of the native title settlement are honoured.

AnsweredQoN 600Legislative Assembly
Asked
20 September 2011
Portfolio
Lands

QuestionView source ↗

NEWMAN FREEHOLD LAND SALE — Nyiyaparli people
As a supplementary question, does the minister think it is acceptable to give a valuable piece of land to a private company, not an Aboriginal corporation, with no balance sheet, no development experience and no income, and for that land to now be covered by four mortgages to run the operating expenses of that company? Mr B.J. GRYLLS

AnswerView source ↗

I think it needs to be understood that the Nyiyaparli people came to the government with a development partner and asked the government to transfer the land to the entity that they nominated. The Nyiyaparli people formed a joint venture. They came to the government and suggested that, in settlement of native title, this is what they would do. I have found no information to suggest that the Department of Regional Development and Lands did anything other than what it was requested to do by the Nyiyaparli claimants or their representatives. Again, it seems that there is now a dispute over which company that land was placed with. That dispute will play out. My commitment to the Nyiyaparli people is that we will make sure that the government honours its original intention to allow them — Mr B.S. Wyatt : You should have done that before you transferred the land. That’s the problem. There was no due diligence done by your office or the department. The SPEAKER : Member for Victoria Park! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : Again, the member for Victoria Park is suggesting that, when we turned up to sign the agreement with the Nyiyaparli people and their nominated joint venture partner, we should have suggested to them that their joint venture partner was not a good partner for them to sign up with. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : The department satisfied itself that there was no reason to oppose the joint venture development that the Nyiyaparli people had proposed. In the ensuing two years, it seems that there are major concerns about that agreement, and that will play out. Let me be clear again: the government will continue to work with the Nyiyaparli people to ensure that the original intentions of that deal, which, as I said, was a deal to settle native title and to allow our government to develop land and allow them to develop their project, continue.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS replied: I think it needs to be understood that the Nyiyaparli people came to the government with a development partner and asked the government to transfer the land to the entity that they nominated. The Nyiyaparli people formed a joint venture. They came to the government and suggested that, in settlement of native title, this is what they would do. I have found no information to suggest that the Department of Regional Development and Lands did anything other than what it was requested to do by the Nyiyaparli claimants or their representatives. Again, it seems that there is now a dispute over which company that land was placed with. That dispute will play out. My commitment to the Nyiyaparli people is that we will make sure that the government honours its original intention to allow them — Mr B.S. Wyatt : You should have done that before you transferred the land. That’s the problem. There was no due diligence done by your office or the department. The SPEAKER : Member for Victoria Park! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : Again, the member for Victoria Park is suggesting that, when we turned up to sign the agreement with the Nyiyaparli people and their nominated joint venture partner, we should have suggested to them that their joint venture partner was not a good partner for them to sign up with. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : The department satisfied itself that there was no reason to oppose the joint venture development that the Nyiyaparli people had proposed. In the ensuing two years, it seems that there are major concerns about that agreement, and that will play out. Let me be clear again: the government will continue to work with the Nyiyaparli people to ensure that the original intentions of that deal, which, as I said, was a deal to settle native title and to allow our government to develop land and allow them to develop their project, continue.
I think it needs to be understood that the Nyiyaparli people came to the government with a development partner and asked the government to transfer the land to the entity that they nominated. The Nyiyaparli people formed a joint venture. They came to the government and suggested that, in settlement of native title, this is what they would do. I have found no information to suggest that the Department of Regional Development and Lands did anything other than what it was requested to do by the Nyiyaparli claimants or their representatives. Again, it seems that there is now a dispute over which company that land was placed with. That dispute will play out. My commitment to the Nyiyaparli people is that we will make sure that the government honours its original intention to allow them — Mr B.S. Wyatt : You should have done that before you transferred the land. That’s the problem. There was no due diligence done by your office or the department. The SPEAKER : Member for Victoria Park! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : Again, the member for Victoria Park is suggesting that, when we turned up to sign the agreement with the Nyiyaparli people and their nominated joint venture partner, we should have suggested to them that their joint venture partner was not a good partner for them to sign up with. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : The department satisfied itself that there was no reason to oppose the joint venture development that the Nyiyaparli people had proposed. In the ensuing two years, it seems that there are major concerns about that agreement, and that will play out. Let me be clear again: the government will continue to work with the Nyiyaparli people to ensure that the original intentions of that deal, which, as I said, was a deal to settle native title and to allow our government to develop land and allow them to develop their project, continue.
Mr B.S. Wyatt : You should have done that before you transferred the land. That’s the problem. There was no due diligence done by your office or the department. The SPEAKER : Member for Victoria Park! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : Again, the member for Victoria Park is suggesting that, when we turned up to sign the agreement with the Nyiyaparli people and their nominated joint venture partner, we should have suggested to them that their joint venture partner was not a good partner for them to sign up with. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : The department satisfied itself that there was no reason to oppose the joint venture development that the Nyiyaparli people had proposed. In the ensuing two years, it seems that there are major concerns about that agreement, and that will play out. Let me be clear again: the government will continue to work with the Nyiyaparli people to ensure that the original intentions of that deal, which, as I said, was a deal to settle native title and to allow our government to develop land and allow them to develop their project, continue.
The SPEAKER : Member for Victoria Park! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : Again, the member for Victoria Park is suggesting that, when we turned up to sign the agreement with the Nyiyaparli people and their nominated joint venture partner, we should have suggested to them that their joint venture partner was not a good partner for them to sign up with. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : The department satisfied itself that there was no reason to oppose the joint venture development that the Nyiyaparli people had proposed. In the ensuing two years, it seems that there are major concerns about that agreement, and that will play out. Let me be clear again: the government will continue to work with the Nyiyaparli people to ensure that the original intentions of that deal, which, as I said, was a deal to settle native title and to allow our government to develop land and allow them to develop their project, continue.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : Again, the member for Victoria Park is suggesting that, when we turned up to sign the agreement with the Nyiyaparli people and their nominated joint venture partner, we should have suggested to them that their joint venture partner was not a good partner for them to sign up with. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : The department satisfied itself that there was no reason to oppose the joint venture development that the Nyiyaparli people had proposed. In the ensuing two years, it seems that there are major concerns about that agreement, and that will play out. Let me be clear again: the government will continue to work with the Nyiyaparli people to ensure that the original intentions of that deal, which, as I said, was a deal to settle native title and to allow our government to develop land and allow them to develop their project, continue.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Members! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : The department satisfied itself that there was no reason to oppose the joint venture development that the Nyiyaparli people had proposed. In the ensuing two years, it seems that there are major concerns about that agreement, and that will play out. Let me be clear again: the government will continue to work with the Nyiyaparli people to ensure that the original intentions of that deal, which, as I said, was a deal to settle native title and to allow our government to develop land and allow them to develop their project, continue.
The SPEAKER : Members! Mr B.J. GRYLLS : The department satisfied itself that there was no reason to oppose the joint venture development that the Nyiyaparli people had proposed. In the ensuing two years, it seems that there are major concerns about that agreement, and that will play out. Let me be clear again: the government will continue to work with the Nyiyaparli people to ensure that the original intentions of that deal, which, as I said, was a deal to settle native title and to allow our government to develop land and allow them to develop their project, continue.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : The department satisfied itself that there was no reason to oppose the joint venture development that the Nyiyaparli people had proposed. In the ensuing two years, it seems that there are major concerns about that agreement, and that will play out. Let me be clear again: the government will continue to work with the Nyiyaparli people to ensure that the original intentions of that deal, which, as I said, was a deal to settle native title and to allow our government to develop land and allow them to develop their project, continue.

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