Ms O’CONNOR – I have a few questions about the Tasman Highway upgrade, which we have learnt this morning is part of that process of pushing out expenditure.
This is a project that’s been on the government’s agenda for the last six‑and‑a-half years. As we understand it, part of the reason we are where we are is because State Growth, through previous ministers, obviously, put a lot of time into trying to avoid EPBC assessment of the values along the highway there. Could we please have an update on how the money that’s been allocated to that project so far has been spent? We suspect that quite a lot has been spent on consultants commissioned to try to get around the EPBC act.
Mr VINCENT – I wouldn’t have the breakdown of those costs, but we could work through that, if you like, and produce that. I have the cost of each of the projects there, on the South East Traffic Solution (SETS) project, but I wouldn’t have a breakdown at hand.
Ms O’CONNOR – Is it possible to get a breakdown, minister?
Mr VINCENT – I should imagine there would be. I fully understand.
Ms O’CONNOR – There will be something somewhere in the department that answers the question.
Mr VINCENT – There would be. I just haven’t got it here at the moment. The team will get that for us and the breakdown on that that’s the consultants.
The biodiversity and all parts of the EPBC, it’s an interesting and frustrating point. Most of the things we’re dealing with, with the South-East Traffic Solution are still items that we knew about from day 1. Some of the points are the increasing [inaudible] effect of the EPBC, which has changed somewhat from initially, and the fact that – and Ben might be able to follow with a bit more information. But they don’t really want to start their assessment until the project design is at a certain stage, so you just can’t say, ‘We’re going to put causeways across here; can we have an open discussion about this?’ They need a lot more detail on that. It takes a while sometimes to get that concept going, which has added to the delay. Then a lot of questions come back. I’m not involved with all those intricate parts of it but, Ben, do you want the honours there, or Cynthia?
Ms O’CONNOR – Just to be clear, when you said earlier that some of these issues were known about since day 1, it would be fair to say, wouldn’t it, that there were EPBC act considerations for that project the government knew about from day 1 but, for whatever reason, chose not to deal with efficiently and appropriately, and tried to get around an EPBC act referral? So, the government did know from day 1 that there might be issues there under Commonwealth law and six‑and‑a‑half years later, the project hasn’t gone into the Commonwealth for assessment. Consultants have been engaged that the government presumably thought would bolster its argument, and money’s being squandered.
Mr VINCENT – I wouldn’t put it in those terms, but I will ask the deputy secretary to – Common sense says that if you can avoid a sensitive area with a design and a move of the road, you would do those things. I have been on the side involved, as the local mayor, on that project we’re talking about there, with discussions with other landowners at the golf club and other infrastructure delicacies like the water line that goes through there and the MBM and carbon fibre, so there’s a lot of things that determine the placement and design of that road, and changes were made along those lines. For more detail, could I ask the deputy secretary of Transport to take that on, please?
Ms HEYDON – Yes. Again, just for clarity, we are abiding with the EPBC act and we’ve actually had referrals in for two years with them. We’ve had a bit of backwards and forwards as part of the consultation process that’s required under that act. And we’ve got an additional request for information that we’re preparing to send through to them as well. So, we are being consistent with the act.
As the minister said, there is a lengthy design process. Our intent is to try and avoid any environmentally sensitive. That’s the first approach. And then, if you can’t, it’s what does that look like? and then we have made referrals as part of that act. We are working very closely with the AGs on this. It has been a slow process. They’ve got a lot on at the moment. But we’ve been advocating to try and speed up that process and get feedback from them on our referrals.
Ms O’CONNOR – After a very slow start, minister, for whatever reason, a referral wasn’t made to the Commonwealth until four years into the project. I’m sure, as the former mayor of Sorell, you’d be disappointed in your predecessors who oversaw what has clearly been a badly managed project. We’re here in part because the state government tried to get around the EPBC considerations on that site.
Can we just be clear that we’re getting details on the breakdown?
Mr LIMKIN – Yes, we are getting the consultant breakdown for the work.
