Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Opposition Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

Labor understands the position that has been put by the Democrats here. We are not minded to support them. We believe that the bill should pass in its present form. The issue is important though. Labor has said that the government should take a hard look at this area, and not move it, and it should then ensure that the native title holders are consulted. The government has clearly rejected that position and it is going to proceed without taking that course. It is the better course to take—to ensure that there are clear lines of communication between all parties and to ensure that the items that relate to the validation of the alternative state regime should have certainty. The government is not minded to take that course. The difficulty is that without those provisions you may have unintended consequences. Labor has not had an opportunity to look at that. The committee report ultimately does not provide any grounds on which Labor would support Senator Bartlett’s position. I think Senator Bartlett is aware of that. But I do understand the principle upon which he seeks to oppose items in schedule 1.