Question without Notice: Planning - Bastion Point boat ramp

Ms PENNICUIK (Southern Metropolitan) -- My question is for Mr Madden, the self-described reluctant interventionist Minister for Planning. In question time last week the minister stated that he visited the site of the proposed Bastian Point boat ramp and that this visit in part led to the minister disagreeing with the panel's strong recommendation not to proceed with anything more than a moderate upgrade of the existing boat ramp. I am advised that members of the community and Save Bastian Point campaign tried to meet with the minister, but to no avail. With whom did the minister meet at that visit?

The PRESIDENT -- Order! I remind the house that it is always appropriate when asking a question to address the question to the appropriate minister and use the minister's proper title.

Hon. J. M. MADDEN (Minister for Planning) -- I welcome Ms Pennicuik's interest in this area. I recall our visit down to Lakes Entrance when the Legislative Council sat there. On that occasion I met with a number of community representatives who were opposed to the Bastian Point proposition. When I visited Bastian Point to conduct an inspection on the basis of the panel report that I have before me, I met not with councillors but with the planner from the council so that he could provide me with an overview of the site where the project would be located. What was particularly worthwhile for me on that day was to stand at the location of the various propositions, to see the existing boat ramp, which is basically the equivalent of a driveway crossing; it is hard to call it a boat ramp, but it is used as a boat ramp.

As I have said on a number of occasions in this place, the proposition that was put before me by the panel in its recommendations was a do-nothing with a little bit extra.

The critical issue was, if you basically did nothing, that safety, either on the existing boat ramp or any new boat ramp, had to be considered accordingly. Bearing in mind that any of the propositions would have seen increased use of either the existing or any new ramp, the critical issue was the conflict of water traffic in the location of the existing ramp. That was important because of the likelihood of boat operators, surfers and swimmers using that location -- particularly with surfers and boat users using it sometimes at dawn in near darkness. Those safety issues have to be paramount in my mind because to do nothing in that option was not an option.

I am prepared to stand by that decision, and I know that it is not one that sits comfortably with some members of the community. I stated in the chamber when I answered the question on that occasion that I know this has been a divisive issue for many years for those who either visit or live in Mallacoota.

But it is an issue that needs to be resolved because what we cannot have at the end of the day is for an accident to occur because of the existing ramp, or an accident to occur out in the ocean or near Gabo Island, and for people not to be able to secure ocean access in the best possible way. They were major considerations for me in determining to steer a different course from that recommended by the panel. I know it has been a difficult decision -- not only for members of the community but also for me -- but I have made the decision in the best interests of not only current Mallacoota residents and visitors of but those who will visit or use any potential boat ramp in the near future.

Supplementary question
Ms PENNICUIK (Southern Metropolitan) -- I thank the minister.

I am not sure if the minister told everybody he met, but now that he is moving to take over decision-making authority for an increasing number of large and sensitive developments, often under rules that he himself will have created, what procedures will he put in place to ensure that meetings between the minister, proponents and developers and their lobbyists are made transparent?

Hon. J. M. Madden -- On a point of order, President, I am just seeking clarification here. I am not sure if that supplementary question is specific to the initial question because it seems like a new question as opposed to one that is specific to this case. Is that what Ms Pennicuik is seeking?

The PRESIDENT -- Order! I think the minister is arguably correct in terms of the relevance of Ms Pennicuik's supplementary question to the original question but I am not quite sure myself, so I will give Ms Pennicuik the opportunity to rephrase it.

Ms PENNICUIK -- I am not sure that the minister went through the full list of people he met. The question is: in regard to the people he met or he will meet on other sensitive developments in the future, how will the public be advised of the people he has met -- how will that be made transparent?

Hon. J. M. MADDEN (Minister for Planning) -- As I made very clear, on this occasion the visit to Mallacoota was a site inspection.

From time to time I will conduct site inspections. As recently as my visit to Apollo Bay, at the site inspection there and as I was standing on the side of the road viewing the site, a local cab driver pulled up to explain to me his vision for what should or should not happen there. From time to time I will get the views of people from all sorts of backgrounds in all sorts of locations, whether they be cab drivers or other locals, when I visit these sites. When I was in Apollo Bay, I sat down and had a coffee when we got out of the rain. There were views given to me also by members of the community in the coffee shop as well as by the people who own the coffee shop.

There will be not only a formalised process for people putting their position to me but of course there will be people who want to tell me their views on particular projects when I am walking down the street. That often happens. I will always seek to provide panel reports, prior to making decisions.

I will also seek when I make those decisions to release the panel report and the reasons for making those decisions and, where it is relevant, I am happy to also identify the people I have met with. Whether it is the cab driver or the coffee shop owner or any of those sorts of people, the list goes on, and I think there is probably a limit to the list of people I should identify that I have met with who have opinions on various projects.

The PRESIDENT -- Order! Clearly the supplementary question was relevant.