30 April 2025
A State Coordinator General’s Office will be given sweeping new powers to fast-track key projects, including AUKUS, under a bill that passed the state’s Upper House last night.
Key points:
- The State Development Coordination and Facilitation Bill 2025creates a new office to fast-track approvals of projects of state significance, including AUKUS
- The Coordinator General’s Office will include four members, with at least one having expertise in AUKUS
- The bill gives the Government the power to declare a project of state significance, which allows the office to perform functions usually performed under other acts (including the Native Vegetation Act, Coastal Protection Act, Heritage Places Act, Local Government Act, Environment Protection Act and Pastoral Lands Act)
- Moves by the Greens to prevent the bill from being used to establish AUKUS related projects or nuclear waste sites, remove an AUKUS specialist from the office, and carve out protections for environment and heritage laws were opposed by Labor and the Liberals
- The Greens opposed the bill
Quotes attributable to Robert Simms MLC, Greens SA Co-Leader:
“The SA Parliament has just given the Malinauskas Government the biggest blank cheque in South Australian history. This bill gives an unelected office the power to override South Australian laws to enable controversial projects, including AUKUS yet it passed the Upper House in the blink of an eye. The fact that Labor and the Liberals opposed my amendments to prevent this new office being used to facilitate the AUKUS deal and establish nuclear waste sites reveals the real intention here.”
“This bill isn’t about facilitating housing developments, it’s about giving the state government the power to ride roughshod over the community. It’s a power grab of epic proportions, that should have been given much more scrutiny in the Parliament. It’s disturbing that a bill of such significance passed the upper house in less than three hours, and when the Minister responsible for this office is not even known.”
Quotes attributable to Senator David Shoebridge, Greens Spokesperson on Defence:
“AUKUS is so unpopular, such a toxic deal, the only way governments can force it through is by creating little AUKUS Tsars. This law will allow for heritage and environmental laws to be overridden, all so US President Donald Trump can get some AUKUS submarines into the water off Adelaide.”
“The people of Adelaide don't want nuclear submarines on their doorstep. But that is exactly what AUKUS will do. This is why they are doing everything they can to concentrate power into the hands of a few, to force it through.”
“With AUKUS, Labor and the Coalition are tying us to President Trump and the US military. It doesn't keep us safe, the Greens around the country are fighting to end AUKUS and protect our land and water from nuclear waste and war.”