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Legislative Council - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2008-11-25 Daily Xml
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COPPER COAST DISTRICT COUNCIL

The Hon. SANDRA KANCK (15:27): As a supplementary question, has the inquiry conducted by the minister's office involved consultations with residents of the Copper Coast or only with council members and staff?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for State/Local Government Relations, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister Assisting the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Energy) (15:28): My understanding is that the powers of my office relate only to local government, and that is where we extend our authority to. There is a paper and an electronic trail for all communications and transactions that transpire. These are very experienced officers. Our crown solicitors are also very experienced, and they know the sort of information they need to demonstrate that due process is adhered to in terms of the land sale and the expressions of interest that went out in respect of this land sale.

They would require the local council to demonstrate that it has adhered to all the proper processes undertaken. As I said, we are able to use only the powers that we have before us. The honourable member and citizens are able to request that, for instance, the Ombudsman investigate this matter. That process is available to ordinary citizens. I am not too sure whether the Hon. Sandra Kanck has written to the Ombudsman and requested this. So, those processes are also available to the general public. If any members of the public believe that the matter is not being dealt with appropriately, I invite them to avail themselves of those sorts of avenues.

The Hon. P. Holloway interjecting:

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: That is exactly right. For goodness sake, the last time I looked, in this country we are considered innocent until proven guilty. Clearly, we need to protect the public, but not at the expense of not allowing local councillors due process. After all, local councillors are mostly members of the local community; most of them undertake the vast majority of their work on a volunteer basis; they contribute an enormous amount to the community; and they undertake significant responsibilities in relation to the carriage of those responsibilities.

So, those councillors are entitled to due process, and they are entitled to have matters investigated thoroughly before the state government expends enormous resources and taxpayers' money on undertaking formal and extensive investigations. We are not afraid of doing that if it is necessary, but I believe that a proper and responsible minister would make sure that they had the appropriate level of concern and evidence before them before they launch into these expensive investigations.

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