WA: Labor criminal for blocking WA native title law: Howard

AAP General News (Australia)
04-20-1999
WA: Labor criminal for blocking WA native title law: Howard

KALGOORLIE, WA, April 20 AAP - Prime Minister John Howard today said the West Australian
Labor Party's blocking of state native title legislation was little short of criminal.

Mr Howard took the argument for the Court government's complementary native title
legislation to the heart of the Australian mining community today.

He told a Liberal Party lunch in Kalgoorlie that after the 18-month battle to pass the Wik
legislation through federal parliament, he never considered that complementary state
legislation would be blocked in the WA parliament.

He said that some state Labor MPs privately backed the state legislation but would not
support it publicly.

"What is happening here in Western Australia in political terms is little short of
criminal," he said.

"We went through the debate at the national level, we had it resolved at a national level,
and it is beyond belief to me that a collection of upper house members in the Labor Party in
Western Australia should be blocking the complementary legislation presented by the Court
government".

The Labor Party blocked the legislation late last year and introduced its own amendments.

However, it led to deep divisions within the party with state leader Geoff Gallop staking
his job on opposing the legislation.

Mr Howard also remained non-committal on business tax reform, saying he would wait for the
final recommendation of the Ralph Committee.

However, he said he was aware that the mining industry did not favour trading off
accelerated depreciation of assets for a 30 per cent company tax rate.

AAP pr/dd/bm/de

KEYWORD: WIK HOWARD

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