Urgent Debates Declined — Mining in Conservation Areas—Joint Ministerial Approval for Access

I have received a letter from the honourable Leader of the Opposition seeking to debate under Standing Order 380 the introduction of joint ministerial approval for access to Crown land. Standing Order 380 requires that the matter for debate be a particular case of recent occurrence, involving ministerial responsibility. For there to be a particular case of recent occurrence, an event upon which an urgent debate is sought must have occurred. The purpose of the urgent debate procedure is to provide an opportunity for the House to hold the Government accountable for its decisions.

Ministers released a discussion paper yesterday containing a number of proposals and seeking input from the community before making decisions about the policy initiatives set out in the paper, including the introduction of joint ministerial approval. No decision has yet been made. In these circumstances there can be no particular case of recent occurrence. This does not mean that the matter is not of sufficient importance to require the attention of the House; it simply does not meet the requirement of the urgent debate procedure at this time. The application is, therefore, declined.