More Labor MPs come clean on WA mining junket, but questions remain

At least four federal Labor MPs went on a lobby-funded tour of Western Australian mines last month, it can be revealed.

Crikey understands more MPs were on the trip, including several state MPs — though both the federal government and the lobby group that paid for the trip have refused to say who they were.

Resources Minister Madeleine King and Paterson MP Meryl Swanson have both formally disclosed their attendance. Crikey has also confirmed Pearce MP Tracey Roberts, from WA, was there. Another federal Labor member from WA was there too, Swan MP Zaneta Mascarenhas, although her office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The trip, which was partly bankrolled by the Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia (CME) was aimed at “resource sector familiarisation and networking”, according to King’s disclosure form.

The politicians were flown between several mine sites over three days in mid-October. 

Labor staffers said it was difficult to quantify the value of the flights between the mine sites, which are usually equipped with airstrips and not accessible by commercial flights.

Taxpayers paid for Swanson’s commercial flights to and from WA, at an estimated cost of about $800 each way, her office said. 

The mining lobby paid for King to stay one night at Kingfisher Village, according to her disclosure form.

An executive room at a fly in-fly out workers’ lodging by that name in Karratha, operated by Stayover Ausco, costs $214.50 a night, including breakfast, lunch and dinner, the company told Crikey. 

King’s second night was spent at Seasons Hotel Newman, which the lobby would have paid at least $253 for, according to the hotel website. 

Crikey understands tour activities included visits to an iron ore mine, a lithium mine, and a gas rig. Briefing topics included FIFO logistics, and the mining industry’s “reconciliation strategy” to mitigate the fallout from the destruction of the sacred Indigenous site at Juukan Gorge. 

The politicians were also shown some technological marvels, such as driverless trains and autonomous vehicles. And the MPs had a chance to mingle with workers, including having “sunset drinks” in a mine camp, Crikey understands. 

King, who has made no secret of her attendance and who disclosed the trip on Parliament’s register of interests before it happened, said the visit was essential for her work in the resource portfolio. 

“The minister for resources was part of a delegation visiting various resource sites in the Pilbara organised by the Chamber of Minerals and Energy,” she told Crikey in comments supplied by her office.

“Many of these sites had only recently opened to visitors because of COVID-19. Travel and access to these resource projects can only be facilitated with the assistance of the operators of these projects. It is essential that the minister for resources visit resource projects across the country.”

Swanson updated her disclosure form on budget day to say she went on the trip to “experience a better understanding of the industry” and attend “briefings by stakeholders”. 

Roberts has yet to update her disclosure form. But her office confirmed she attended the tour and sent a statement that appeared to be a copy-paste of the minister’s comments.

“The member for Pearce was part of a delegation visiting various resource sites in the Pilbara organised by the Chamber of Minerals and Energy,” Roberts’ office said. “Many of these sites had only recently opened to visitors because of COVID-19. Travel and access to these resource projects can only be facilitated with the assistance of the operators of these projects.”

All three politicians were asked who else was on the trip, but none were willing to say. A spokesman for Swanson put a comment on the record saying she “declined to provide a full list of attendees”.

The CME pitched the trip to the politicians, and shared the costs with the Minerals Council of Australia and the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association.

The lobbyists paid for flights between the mine sites, from Karratha to Wodgina, from Wodgina to Christmas Creek, from Christmas Creek to Newman Airport, and from Karratha to Perth, according to King’s disclosure form.

The CME ignored requests by Crikey to list the MPs who were on the trip but said the visitors included “state and federal members of Parliament, many early in their terms and/or with electorates where the mining and resources sector may not have active operations but from which it draws a portion of its workforce”. 

“[Organising tours] has been a long-standing practice aimed at providing MPs, along with representatives from relevant government departments, with a greater understanding of operations that are significant for economies and communities around Australia,” CME chief executive Rebecca Tomkinson said. 

“Several of the sites involved are in very remote locations and all are only accessible with the assistance of their operators. Many of these sites were not accessible to visitors earlier in the year due to COVID-19 and this was the first opportunity for such a tour to be organised.”

Tomkinson added the tour focused on the scope and output of mining operations, and “how they interact with local communities, including traditional owners and other Indigenous stakeholders”. 

She said the CME also attempted to highlight “the contributions WA mining and resources operations are making and will continue to make to the global push to reach net zero” by reducing on-site emissions and “producing commodities that will assist with decarbonisation across industry and society”.

MPs have 28 days to declare gifts, meaning all who were on the trip should get their forms in order by mid-November.