National participation needs a different attitude from proponents, WRF argues
Efforts to make the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) truly national will continue to fail unless proponents are willing to engage with regions that rejected its present form, they have been warned.
With Western Australia and the Northern Territory outside the framework, Western Roads Federation (WRF) CEO Cam Dumesny has again called out a mindset that he believes precludes proper negotiation on the issue.
Dumesny notes the Productivity Commission’s transport reform draft report comments on WA and NT’s non-participation in the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) as “unfinished business”.
Read the initial response to the PC’s draft reform report, here
“Yet the Productivity Commission’s public consultations on the draft report will only be held in the East Coast mainland capitals Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. Poor Tasmania is forgotten again,” he says.
“It is not just the Productivity Commission but the National Transport Commission, who are reviewing the HVNL with the objective of getting WA and the NT to join.
“Yet not once have they actually scheduled any industry meetings in WA or the NT.
“It was only through WRF inviting the NTC to come to WA that our members got any chance for direct industry input. And we thank the NTC’s Paul Davies for making the effort.
“These reports and reviews have the potential to substantively impact WA and NT businesses and economy, yet our respective industry member views are not being seriously asked for.
“Yes, [NTRTA executive officer] Louise Bilato from the NT is on the expert reference panel, but that does not negate the need for the NTC to engage directly with WA and the NT.”
Dumesny questions the commitment of policy-makers to the task or to fair treatment if regions beyond the east of the country do come into the fold.
“Routinely we are told by such East Coast organisations that ‘its really too far to go to WA’ or ‘our budget doesn’t allow it or it takes a lot of time to get there’,” he says.
“If it is too far, too expensive or too time consuming to go to WA or the NT when they are trying to win over our jurisdictions, what hope have we got to get our issues heard if we were participating jurisdictions.
“Possibly the fabled WA year 12 Geography exam question was right, that Australia consists of just two states and one territory: Western Australia, the Northern Territory and the East.
“As such maybe WA and the NT should set up an embassy in the east?”