Opposition Leader Shane Love has called out WA Labor, as the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs refused to release a summary of legal advice underpinning the biggest policy backflip this term of Government.
During Parliamentary Question Time, Mr Love asked the Attorney-General and Minister Buti to table the legal advice which seemingly spurred their eleventh-hour decision to scrap their Cultural Heritage Act after only six weeks of operation.
“After the biggest policy backflip from a Government in recent memory, the Opposition has asked for clarity on what legal advice WA Labor received before overturning their heritage laws,” Mr Love said.
“Only weeks ago, the Premier said his laws were “not radical” and “these laws are ready to go”.
Overnight, his talking points changed to fact the law “unintentionally caused stress, confusion and division in the community”.
“It doesn’t take a genius to figure out it was not the Government’s so-called conscience that forced them into backflipping, but the legal advice they received.”
Despite Mr Love’s questions, Minister Buti refused to table a summary of the legal advice, claiming precedent disqualified him from doing so.
“The question Western Australian’s are asking is, what is WA Labor hiding?
“Minister Buti’s failure to provide advice on the grounds of his pretend precedent reeks of a Labor Government which lacks transparency and hides things from the people of Western Australia.
“Minister Buti has one more chance to be transparent. Again, I call on him to release a summary of the legal advice WA Labor received that triggered the ‘Buti Backflip’.”
