Mining royalties should be used to combat Pilbara youth crime: Mining and Pastoral MLC Wilson Tucker

A fringe member of Parliament has urged the State Government to use Pilbara mining royalties to fund efforts to tackle the region’s spiralling crime issues and lack of services. Mining and Pastoral MLC Wilson Tucker — who controversially gained a Mining and Pastoral seat with fewer than 100 votes last year — introduced a motion to the WA Parliament on October 26 calling for an increase to the royalty rate. When raising the motion, Mr Tucker said while resource companies were making record profits, the towns in which they operate were struggling. “South Hedland has some of the highest crime rates in WA and high level of social inequality, and this is all happening within walking distance to the largest bulk export port in the world,” he said. “The port and the trains moving huge quantities of iron ore are responsible for an immense amount of wealth. The wealth is slipping through the hands of the residents in South Hedland and the Western Australian people. “There is a massive opportunity that exists right now and the Government isn’t capitalising on it.” Crime in the Pilbara has been escalating with data released by WA Police revealing South Hedland recorded 3171 offences in 2021, an increase of 886 offences compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, this year a total of 2233 offences have been recorded through to September. This rise in offending led to Operation Regional Shield, a multimillion-dollar response to tackle youth crime, being rolled out in the Pilbara in April. In March, Hedland taxi drivers went on strike for seven days to get direct action on crime affecting their business, including rocks being thrown at vehicles. Last month a Toyota Hilux was allegedly used by two juveniles to break into the Shell service station before driving to South Hedland and ram-raiding the Last Chance Tavern. Rather than raising taxation across the board, Mr Tucker said the Government should look at introducing a mechanism to take a portion of earnings from resource companies “when the profits are sky-high and use that money to improve living conditions for the West Australian people”. However, the motion faced backlash when raised by Mr Tucker, with members of both the Opposition and State Government blasting the idea. While it received support from four members of the Legislative Council — Mr Tucker, Greens member Brad Pettitt and the Legalise Cannabis party’s Sophia Moermond and Dr Brian Walker — 26 members rejected the plan, including Mining and Pastoral MLCs Peter Foster and Stephen Dawson. Opposition member for the Mining and Pastoral Region Neil Thomson opposed the motion but said there was a need for smarter investment in the regions. Mr Thompson said the decline of the Royalties for Regions program had led to problems with amenities in South and Port Hedland. “That is why towns like Port Hedland are now in disarray. That is why we cannot afford to do anything,” he said. “There are basic problems with amenities in South Hedland. It has got so bad. “There are challenges from the dead generation of community amenity, with an increase in antisocial behaviour and crime.” In response to the motion, Mining and Pastoral MLC Stephen Dawson said the Government was investing in projects across the Pilbara, including Port Hedland. Mr Dawson said the Government was upgrading infrastructure at Lumsden Point and spending about $50 million for the construction of a supply base to support oil and gas operations in the Browse Basin. “This follows more than $1.7 billion invested in economic diversification initiatives in the previous 2021–22 Budget and midyear review, which included major investments to support Perdaman’s $4.5 billion investment in the Pilbara for its proposed urea project,” he said. Mr Dawson said much of the money for projects had come in from royalties from the mining sector.