Dean Smith (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Competition, Charities and Treasury) Share this | Hansard source

ator DEAN SMITH () (): Western Australians have welcomed the backdown by their new Labor premier, Roger Cook, of his poorly planned, poorly implemented Aboriginal cultural heritage laws. The right thing to do is how WA Liberal leader Libby Mettam greeted the news. In her words, they 'overreached, causing unnecessary angst in the community'. It's a win for WA and a win for the thousands who signed petitions, attended meetings and voiced their concerns. It's a triumph for common sense. All this pain, anxiety and confusion could have been avoided if WA's Labor premier had chosen to listen earlier. This is a triumph for common sense, but WA Labor's still faces a test: a test about where its interests really lie, a test on whether it can strike the right balance.

WA's interests are always best served by a workable Aboriginal cultural heritage regime that enjoys the strongest support from agricultural communities, from mining communities and from Indigenous communities. Labor's act failed this important test. WA Labor and Premier Cook have said they will now tweak the pre-existing act. This is their last chance to create a modern fit-for-purpose and distinctly WA Aboriginal heritage law for the future.