Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. I cannot give the member an absolute list of what would be acceptable as part of this plan and what would not be acceptable. The company is required under this amendment bill to create a community and social benefits plan. The plan has a title. It is a community and social benefits plan. It is not a commercial plan. Under that plan, the company will spend $400 million on training and guaranteed employment for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people living in the Pilbara region. That will be easy to measure. It will be easy to see whether that is being implemented. The plan also includes regional development and local procurement of goods and services. That will also be easy to measure. The company’s procurement processes will be transparent and obvious. The plan also includes contribution to community services and facilities. That will also be obvious. Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx: It may not be tangible. Hon XXXXXX XXXXX: The company may put money into a clinic, or into providing other services. Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx: That is not perfectly clear. Hon XXXXXX XXXXX: The plan also includes a regionally-based workforce. If that is not clear, I do not know what is. The company is saying that it will employ people who live in the region, because it would rather employ those people than people from outside the region. I would have thought those four points are as clear as the nose on our face. They are measurable and transparent. I ask the member to understand that the government, which has negotiated this particular variation agreement, wants to get $400 million worth of community and social benefits out of this company in exchange for this agreement. It will be up to the Minister for State Development of the day to ensure that the company is delivering on the community and social benefits outlined in the variation. I cannot give the member a definitive set of criteria that will be applied when that particular judgement is made. However, I assure the member that we believe that this is a very important part of this variation. It is a commitment by the company to ensure that this money is used to assist the people in the Pilbara region, particularly the Indigenous people, so that they will benefit from this agreement.
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. Come off it! I don’t even know who you’re talking about. Do you think I’ve rung somebody up? Xxx XXXX XXXXXXXXX: Not the minister. I want to know. Hon Xxxxxx Xxxxx: Well, I wouldn’t have a clue who talks to your friends. I don’t even know who your mate is; probably the only one you’ve got. Xxx XXXX XXXXXXXXX: I am asking how at a confidential briefing—I am not saying that it was the minister — Hon Xxxxxx Xxxxx: What are you implying then? Xxx XXXX XXXXXXXXX: If the cap fits. Hon Xxxxxx Xxxxx: Everybody knows you people oppose everything; so it’s just a matter of course. Xxx XXXX XXXXXXXXX: I am saying that I went to a confidential briefing about this bill. Hon Xxxxxx Xxxxx: Did you tell the people at the briefing you were opposed to the bill?
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. It’s only worth $3 billion to the state, so it’s quite an important bill.
Examples of Hon XXXXXX XXXXX in a sentence
The project will generate $75 billion of export income; $3.5 billion in capital expenditure; $3.3 billion in royalties; $31 million in stamp duty; 2 500 construction jobs; 500 or 600 permanent jobs, I am not sure which — Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx: It might be 500 or 600! Hon XXXXXX XXXXX: It might be 500, 600 or even 900 permanent jobs.
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX: Sino Iron is one of the co-proponents of this contract.
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX: I am advised that it relates to medical research and support of the Indigenous communities of the Shire of Roebourne, so that the funds are for medical research related to Indigenous issues.
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX: It may well be, but I am not sure whether that is a significant problem, frankly.
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX: I am not going to go there, not because I do not have a good argument but I — Xxx Xxx Xxxxxxx: Because you don’t! Hon XXXXXX XXXXX: Actually, I do.
More Definitions of Hon XXXXXX XXXXX
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. The member did. I wrote it down as a quote. He can read it in Hansard tomorrow. Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx was critical of the fact that previous state agreement acts did not have a provision for shire rating on a gross rental value basis. He is quite right. However, he does not understand why that was put in place in the first place. The Mount Xxxxxx and Xxxxxxxxx Iron state agreement acts required the companies to build just about every stick of infrastructure in those communities, which provided significant benefit to the local authorities without the local authorities having to make a contribution. In exchange for the companies building everything, they were given rate relief. Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx talked about his confidential briefing being leaked. I do not think for one minute that anybody who briefed the member is likely to ring his friend in Karratha and tell him that Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx is going to block the legislation. I find it bizarre that the member should even suggest that. I do not know who briefed the member and who came to that conclusion. If the member did not tell anybody who was briefing him that he was going to block it, I do not see how he could possibly claim that someone would have rung his friend and said that he was going to block it. I do not know whether the member will support the legislation. We will soon find out. It is quite bizarre to suggest that somebody is going to ring Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx’s friend and tell him that Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx is going to oppose the bill. Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx referred to the 5 000 hectares set aside for the conservation estate, and said we should be grateful for small mercies. Five thousand hectares is quite significant, bearing in mind that I do not recall similar arrangements being put in place by any mining company. As a matter of interest, the 5 000 hectares is to be used as part of an eradication plan for mesquite. If the member had been to Mardi Station, he would understand that it is a very significant environmental issue. People could probably make money out of mesquite if they had the time and energy to start harvesting it rather than declaring it a noxious weed. It is nasty stuff. An eradication plan is needed. I think there is about $3 million in this project to deal with that. A number of matters relate to greenhouse gas issues. I do not think I could ever persuade Xxx Xxxx Xxxxxxxxx about greenhouse gas emissions. He says that, on the one hand, people say this and, on the other hand, people say t...
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. As far as I understand, the Department of Industry and Resources has seen a draft proposal. Contained in the draft proposal is the information that is contained on the company’s website. It relates to the issues under new clause 5A of the agreement, which is in clause 6 of the xxxx. As far as the future of the draft plan is concerned, the final plan needs to be agreed to by the Minister for State Development, not me. I do not know whether it will be made public, but I can take advice on that in due course. I can think of no reason why it should not be, but I would like to take some more advice about whether it may contain some confidential information that the company wants to retain as confidential. It is the sort of thing that members should be made aware of. Hon XXX XXXX: I thank the minister for those comments. New clause 5A(9) on page 12 of the xxxx deals with the prescribed private fund, which I think is a component of the social benefits plan. It refers to $100 million of grants and benefits over the term of the principal agreement. I would like some detail of how the fund will be operated and supervised.
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. As I sought to explain, this would have a serious impact on the financial arrangements the company is seeking to enter into. If you delay it for that long, it will have an adverse impact. I mentioned that in my comments, but that is up to you to decide. Xxx XXX XXXXXXX: Those are valid points. As I have said, we do not want to do that. I think it could be a very short, sharp inquiry. If there is a date by which this bill needs to be passed through this house, I suspect Hon Xxx Xxxx would be more than willing to negotiate with the government to get the committee report back by a certain date and to agree to pass the bill through the house within that time frame. If that meant the house sitting all night to get it through to make sure that this went ahead, those are the sorts of things that the Labor Party would agree to. Hon Xxx Xxxx has carriage of this bill for the opposition, but they are the sorts of things that we, as a party, would be more than happy to engage in to enable the referral so that we can know and understand the implications of the bill when we take the decision, as the Leader of the House quite rightly pointed out, to either accept or reject this legislation. I think we have made it very clear that our desire is to accept the legislation, but we want to know the implications of doing so. I come back to the point that this is not uncommon. I do not think we have gone anywhere near what members opposite have done in the past. As I said earlier, when in opposition the Leader of the House gave a speech about the Xxxxxx Island state agreement act. He opposed all the major elements of the bill and said that it was too early, that it was unnecessary and that this and that would not work, but then he supported the bill. We have not done any of that. Hon Xxxxxx Xxxxx: That was my opinion, but I was not going to stand in the way of you getting your legislation through. It is a serious sovereign risk issue when Parliament chucks out state agreement acts. You know that and I know that. Xxx XXX XXXXXXX: Hang on.
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. New clause 5A of the variation agreement outlines the general description of the community social benefits plan. When the variation agreement has been agreed to by Parliament, Mineralogy will be required to provide the details of its plan within the general parameters described in new clause 5A(1). It is then the responsibility of the Minister for State Development to ensure that the government of the day is satisfied that the provisions contained in the company’s community and social benefits plan meet the requirement of the variation agreement and the general objectives that the government deems appropriate in the way in which the moneys are to be spent.
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. If the minister who signs off on this plan determines that some of the work that has already been undertaken by this company meets the criteria outlined for the plan, it will be retrospective. Clause put and passed. Title put and passed. Report Xxxx reported, without amendment, and the report adopted. Third Reading
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. You mean in respect of an Indigenous alliance joint venture? Xxx XXXX XXXXXXXXX: It could be that. The clause states — In this Clause, the term “community and social benefits” includes: …
Hon XXXXXX XXXXX. The proposal is that the Indigenous alliance joint venture between Sino Iron and Central Mining and Contracting is part of the $400 million community and social benefits plan. I want to add that this was negotiated by the previous government, which wanted to make sure that there was a benefit for an Aboriginal contracting organisation to be involved, and so that is part of the $400 million package.