Ian Campbell (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Heritage) Share this | Hansard source

I think it would be a perversion of a well-understood process under one of the world’s most respected environment laws—the federal EPBC Act—for me, without reading the report or any of the scientific assessments, to go off and inform a proponent, either via a lobbyist like Mr Richardson or anyone else. I do not believe I have had any contact from Richo, but I am quite happy if he does contact me. I think he used to sit around here in the chamber, didn’t he? I do not believe I have had contact, but I would be happy to talk to him or anyone else. I am happy to engage with people. For me to proactively—to use the senator’s word—go off and tell people and pre-empt an assessment process would be wrong and I will not do it. The government has a superb record in relation to recovery plans for threatened species—a record for all the world to see. We are spending tens of millions of dollars on recovery plans for a range of threatened species. We will of course look very carefully at the assessment when we receive it.