❓ Opposition Leader McGowan questions Regional Development Minister Grylls about delays and cost blowouts in the Ord River Irrigation Scheme Stage 2, focusing on land release, food production, and value for taxpayers. The Minister defends the project as a vital investment in northern agriculture and Indigenous employment.
AnsweredQoN 582Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
ORD STAGE 2 — LAND RELEASE
582. Mr M. McGOWAN to the Minister for Regional Development:
I refer to the $100 million blow-out on the Ord stage 2
project to $315 million of Western Australian taxpayers' money. Further
to the land release expressions of interest phase, which was scheduled to have
been completed in February, and comments by the minister's director
general in estimates last week that the land is worth ''probably $20
million to $40 million'' —
(1) Why has
the minister not announced the results of the EOI process, which is now eight months
overdue?
(2) What food
will be produced from the minister's self-proclaimed food bowl?
(3) What
guarantees can the minister give that food sourced from the project will be
supplied to the domestic market?
(4) What has
the minister been advised about the value of the land?
582. Mr M. McGOWAN to the Minister for Regional Development:
I refer to the $100 million blow-out on the Ord stage 2
project to $315 million of Western Australian taxpayers' money. Further
to the land release expressions of interest phase, which was scheduled to have
been completed in February, and comments by the minister's director
general in estimates last week that the land is worth ''probably $20
million to $40 million'' —
(1) Why has
the minister not announced the results of the EOI process, which is now eight months
overdue?
(2) What food
will be produced from the minister's self-proclaimed food bowl?
(3) What
guarantees can the minister give that food sourced from the project will be
supplied to the domestic market?
(4) What has
the minister been advised about the value of the land?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the Leader of the Opposition for the question.
(1)–(4)
We are working through the process of deciding on a proponent for the Ord
project. It has taken a little longer than we expected, but I would expect to
have a decision on that before the end of the year; so that has been an
important part of the process. The member is right; there has been a $315 million
state government investment in the Ord. There has also been a $195 million
commonwealth investment in the Ord, and it is a joint project between the state
and commonwealth to open up agricultural land in the north of the state.
Mr T.G. Stephens : It was in schools and
hospitals.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : It was, and the commonwealth agreed
with us that the state would fund the agricultural component of the project,
and the commonwealth would fund the social infrastructure component of the
project. The commonwealth funding also funds an upgrade to the airport and
Wyndham port, and provides support for the Miriuwung and Gajerrong people.
It is important to understand that the Ord project is
possible only because of the excellent work done by the former Leader of the
Opposition in settling native title in the East Kimberley.
Several members interjected.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : If
native title had not been settled, land would not be developed, and, most
importantly, the only benefits that could flow to the native title holders were
if a project was actually undertaken. I am sure members opposite are not
suggesting that they would have taken the Miriuwung and Gajerrong people of the
East Kimberley through a process of settling native title that defined how much
of the land, when developed, they would get and what the Aboriginal development
package would be, and then not actually have undertaken the project!
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Thank you, members!
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : We
have built an irrigation channel out towards the Northern Territory border, we
have built a road out to the Northern Territory border, and there is associated
infrastructure such as a construction camp. There is also an Aboriginal
development package. As we speak, 90 Indigenous people are working on this
project. For many of them, this is their first job ever.
Several members interjected.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS :
The money that is being used to pay the 90 Aboriginal contractors is state
money, because that is the construction money to build the road and the
channel. So the state is funding a project that is giving many of these
Aboriginal people their first job ever.
This is a $315 million investment.
We have now gone to the market and said, ''Give us your proposals for
the development of 15 000 hectares of land using that state-owned and funded
infrastructure''. They have put in their proposals, and government is
considering them. I think that when members opposite consider how they might
like to recoup the value for this investment, they should consider that the
train tickets on their Mandurah railway line do not recoup the full value of
the expenditure on that railway line, and the Northbridge tunnel does not have
a toll on it to extract the full value of that tunnel.
Several members interjected.
Mr
B.J. GRYLLS : We have made the decision to invest in the backbone infrastructure
for the growth of agriculture in the north. This is backbone infrastructure
that is owned by the state and will always be owned by the state, being the
irrigation channel and the road. More importantly, the proposals that we have
called for from industry say that we will not even sell them the land. The land
will be leasehold, so that the Western Australian public will own the land. The
option that we are providing for the investor is to come in and lease the land,
which will be serviced by an irrigation channel and a road, and to develop a
project around that. That project will remain in the ownership of the Western
Australian taxpayer, just like the C.Y. O'Connor pipeline, and just
like the Argyle Dam that we will be drawing the water from.
What we see from the questions of
the opposition is that it is fundamentally opposed to regional development. It
is not prepared to invest for growth in the future; it is prepared to walk away
from the commitments made to the Miriuwung–Gajerrong people through the
signing of the Ord final agreement; and now it is suggesting that the
government should define to private proponents what crops they should grow.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Cannington, I formally call you to order for the first
time today, and I will ask you, member for Cannington, to reflect that in this
place we are referred to by the seats that we occupy. Members, it has not
escaped my attention that a few of you are interjecting rather vigorously.
Member for Victoria Park, I formally call you to order twice today; member for
Warnbro, twice today; member for West Swan, twice today; and member for
Pilbara, twice today.
Mr
B.J. GRYLLS : This project will attract hundreds of millions of dollars of
private sector investment to the East Kimberley of Western Australia. It will
also signal the first substantial northern agricultural development project in
which both the commonwealth and the state are working hard to attract
investment into that part of the world. It will offer to the traditional owners—the
Miriuwung–Gajerrong people—land ownership in the project, and
job and training opportunities across the state. It will ensure that the
economy of regional Western Australia begins its path to diversification so
that we are not so dependent on the resource sector into the future. I believe
there is substantial opportunity to attract private sector investment into
agriculture in the East Kimberley, the West Kimberley and the Pilbara. We are
already seeing substantial investment by Rio Tinto in centre pivots in the
Pilbara for mine dewatering, and through our Gascoyne project, with the member
for North West leading an expansion of horticulture in the north west. Western
Australia has enormous opportunity to grow its agricultural potential, and
projects like the Ord deliver on that potential.
(1)–(4)
We are working through the process of deciding on a proponent for the Ord
project. It has taken a little longer than we expected, but I would expect to
have a decision on that before the end of the year; so that has been an
important part of the process. The member is right; there has been a $315 million
state government investment in the Ord. There has also been a $195 million
commonwealth investment in the Ord, and it is a joint project between the state
and commonwealth to open up agricultural land in the north of the state.
Mr T.G. Stephens : It was in schools and
hospitals.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : It was, and the commonwealth agreed
with us that the state would fund the agricultural component of the project,
and the commonwealth would fund the social infrastructure component of the
project. The commonwealth funding also funds an upgrade to the airport and
Wyndham port, and provides support for the Miriuwung and Gajerrong people.
It is important to understand that the Ord project is
possible only because of the excellent work done by the former Leader of the
Opposition in settling native title in the East Kimberley.
Several members interjected.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : If
native title had not been settled, land would not be developed, and, most
importantly, the only benefits that could flow to the native title holders were
if a project was actually undertaken. I am sure members opposite are not
suggesting that they would have taken the Miriuwung and Gajerrong people of the
East Kimberley through a process of settling native title that defined how much
of the land, when developed, they would get and what the Aboriginal development
package would be, and then not actually have undertaken the project!
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Thank you, members!
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : We
have built an irrigation channel out towards the Northern Territory border, we
have built a road out to the Northern Territory border, and there is associated
infrastructure such as a construction camp. There is also an Aboriginal
development package. As we speak, 90 Indigenous people are working on this
project. For many of them, this is their first job ever.
Several members interjected.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS :
The money that is being used to pay the 90 Aboriginal contractors is state
money, because that is the construction money to build the road and the
channel. So the state is funding a project that is giving many of these
Aboriginal people their first job ever.
This is a $315 million investment.
We have now gone to the market and said, ''Give us your proposals for
the development of 15 000 hectares of land using that state-owned and funded
infrastructure''. They have put in their proposals, and government is
considering them. I think that when members opposite consider how they might
like to recoup the value for this investment, they should consider that the
train tickets on their Mandurah railway line do not recoup the full value of
the expenditure on that railway line, and the Northbridge tunnel does not have
a toll on it to extract the full value of that tunnel.
Several members interjected.
Mr
B.J. GRYLLS : We have made the decision to invest in the backbone infrastructure
for the growth of agriculture in the north. This is backbone infrastructure
that is owned by the state and will always be owned by the state, being the
irrigation channel and the road. More importantly, the proposals that we have
called for from industry say that we will not even sell them the land. The land
will be leasehold, so that the Western Australian public will own the land. The
option that we are providing for the investor is to come in and lease the land,
which will be serviced by an irrigation channel and a road, and to develop a
project around that. That project will remain in the ownership of the Western
Australian taxpayer, just like the C.Y. O'Connor pipeline, and just
like the Argyle Dam that we will be drawing the water from.
What we see from the questions of
the opposition is that it is fundamentally opposed to regional development. It
is not prepared to invest for growth in the future; it is prepared to walk away
from the commitments made to the Miriuwung–Gajerrong people through the
signing of the Ord final agreement; and now it is suggesting that the
government should define to private proponents what crops they should grow.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Cannington, I formally call you to order for the first
time today, and I will ask you, member for Cannington, to reflect that in this
place we are referred to by the seats that we occupy. Members, it has not
escaped my attention that a few of you are interjecting rather vigorously.
Member for Victoria Park, I formally call you to order twice today; member for
Warnbro, twice today; member for West Swan, twice today; and member for
Pilbara, twice today.
Mr
B.J. GRYLLS : This project will attract hundreds of millions of dollars of
private sector investment to the East Kimberley of Western Australia. It will
also signal the first substantial northern agricultural development project in
which both the commonwealth and the state are working hard to attract
investment into that part of the world. It will offer to the traditional owners—the
Miriuwung–Gajerrong people—land ownership in the project, and
job and training opportunities across the state. It will ensure that the
economy of regional Western Australia begins its path to diversification so
that we are not so dependent on the resource sector into the future. I believe
there is substantial opportunity to attract private sector investment into
agriculture in the East Kimberley, the West Kimberley and the Pilbara. We are
already seeing substantial investment by Rio Tinto in centre pivots in the
Pilbara for mine dewatering, and through our Gascoyne project, with the member
for North West leading an expansion of horticulture in the north west. Western
Australia has enormous opportunity to grow its agricultural potential, and
projects like the Ord deliver on that potential.
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.