Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Emergency Management) Share this | Hansard source

This is a stunt from the opposition. It is calling on the government to explain a decision, but the minister has in fact clearly outlined the reasons for the decision that she made, and the Labor Party is happy to defend that because everyone in this room knows that both Liberal and Labor governments have previously made decisions along these lines, consistent with the law.

This decision does not mean that the gold mine can't go ahead. It just means that an Aboriginal heritage site can't be destroyed to build a waste dump for the mine. Genuine partnership with First Nations peoples is essential for the Australian mining sector to reach its full potential, and the Australian government is committed to this goal. Our government has been unequivocal in our support for mining, which employs 300,000 Australians, and that's a good thing. We've announced the most significant resources measures in a budget for a generation. There's $3.4 billion over 35 years for Geoscience Australia to find new deposits of minerals and sources of energy to help build a future made in Australia. The critical minerals production tax incentive provides a 10 per cent refundable tax offset for the processing costs of eligible facilities that process critical minerals in Australia. The production tax credit will incentivise the refining and processing of critical minerals and will create more jobs here in Australia as we become a renewable energy superpower.

But let's be clear. Building a waste dump on this particular site would have destroyed the headwaters of the Belubula River, a place of particular significance for local Aboriginal people going back thousands of years. I hope the company can find an alternative site for its tailings and waste dam. I understand that there were more than four sites investigated with 30 options in the mix.

It is interesting that the opposition is choosing to raise this because there are actually striking similarities between the decision made by the former minister for the environment Ms Ley, who is now of course the deputy Liberal leader. Back in 2021, the deputy Liberal leader made a similar decision, just down the road from the gold mine, in that situation. She made that decision after listening to the views of the same local traditional owner group: the Wiradyuri Traditional Owners Central West Aboriginal Corporation. She said at the time that she protected the site under section 10 of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act—I remind senators that that act has been in place since the 1980s—because of its cultural significance to the Wiradjuri people, on the basis of 'local Aboriginal narratives, songlines, ceremonies and cultural heritage'. Unsurprisingly, we see another member from the Liberals and Nationals undermining their deputy leader here in this place, and, just yesterday, we had members from the opposition in the other place bagging out her previous environment decisions as well.

But, after the Juukan Gorge tragedy, we all said, both Labor and Liberal, that we'd never let something like that happen again. If we really mean that, we have to apply the law. Following Juukan Gorge, the then minister, now deputy Liberal leader, said:

Juukan Gorge was indeed a call to action.

She said that in November 2021. Later in November, she said:

This is about the Government working with Indigenous Australians and recognising their right to determine what is important to them.

She also said: 'It is a high priority to me that we look at better ways of protecting Indigenous cultural heritage.' Well, either that's your view as a political party or it's not.

All of the indications here suggest to us that the coalition are not serious about this, that they are seeking to undermine the commitments that Ms Ley has made and that they don't actually believe the things that she has said on their behalf about the significance of culture. It's a sad thing because the truth is that a healthy mining industry and, indeed, a healthy business environment is intimately connected to us working out how to work effectively with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to protect their culture and grow our economy, and that is entirely possible. If the Liberals have changed their mind on that, they should come out, fess up and inform the chamber.