Fed: Rural Qld to suffer from native title decision: Anderson

AAP General News (Australia)
08-31-2000
Fed: Rural Qld to suffer from native title decision: Anderson

CANBERRA, Aug 31 AAP - Rural and remote Queensland would suffer from the Labor Party's
deal on native title laws, Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson said today.

Under the deal, Labor traded a Senate power to veto future changes to the Queensland
laws, for the right of indigenous people to negotiate over some mining and exploration.

The deal, struck between opposition leader Kim Beazley and Queensland Premier Peter
Beattie, prompted opposition Aboriginal affairs spokesman Daryl Melham to resign from
the Labor frontbench.

"The Labor Party's compromise on compromise in relation to native title in Queensland
is a really serious problem," Mr Anderson said.

"Nothing cruels investment and jobs like uncertainty.

"The fact of the matter is that mining exploration in this country is reaching very
low and extremely concerning levels and now you have a whole heap more uncertainty holding
things up in rural Queensland."

Rural and remote Queensland desperately needed jobs and Labor's deal would obstruct
opportunities in the mining industry, Mr Anderson said.

"That's where the jobs are needed, that's where the opportunities are needed for indigenous
people and I think the inability of Mr Beattie to run things in Queensland, the inability
of Mr Beazley to make decisions in Canberra reflect very poorly on the ALP and the bush
is the loser," he said.

"This further uncertainty with some 12,000 applications piled up in Queensland is a
body blow to remote areas of Queensland and it is a body blow to industries which actually
can offer the investment and employment so many of those communities need.

"You've got a very substantial number of applications reflecting a willingness to go
out and explore, people wanting to look and wanting to develop new opportunities back
in limbo land and it would be a tragedy if a heap of those people pulled out."

AAP eg/mfh/arb/de

KEYWORD: TITLE ANDERSON

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