Claims by MACH Energy, that they would sack 400 workers at the Mount Pleasant Mine unless the Minns Labor Government passes legislation to increase their rate of coal mining, are being questioned after it was revealed that new job advertisements were posted by MACH shortly after the Minns Government announced special laws to allow more coal to be mined.
The announcement by Premier Chris Minns, that special laws would be written for MACH Energy, has caused former Supreme Court Judge Anthony Whealy to call for an independent investigation into the Government decision over public integrity concerns.
Sue Higginson, public interest environmental solicitor and Greens Spokesperson for Climate Change and Planning, said:
“The Government is being fed lies about the job numbers at Mount Pleasant, and they are lapping them up while selling the integrity of the NSW planning and legal systems down the river,”
“MACH Energy’s own documents show that the increased coal mining that will be allowed by Minns’ special laws would only create around 100 jobs, completely undermining their threat to fire 400 workers if they didn’t get their way,”
“This is state capture, a form of modern day corruption in our democracy, where billion dollar corporations are writing laws that benefit them, in defiance of the law as laid down by the High Court of Australia and there is no public oversight of that process. Anthony Whealy is right to call for an independent review of this Government decision and the Greens support this,”
“The Government has decided to step over the independent planning process, they are stepping over the High Court of Australia, and they are trashing the rule of law and supplanting the rule of coal, all while the available evidence suggests that they are being lied to by a massive international mining company,”
Cate Faehrmann, Greens Spokesperson for Mining, Coal and Gas said:
“When wealthy mining companies say jump, Chris Minns says how high. Stuff what the courts say, stuff what our planning laws say and stuff the climate.
“The Premier has clearly been taken for a ride by MACH Energy and this job ad proves it. The company didn’t need special legislation to authorise it to increase coal production. It was doing it anyway.
“The Planning Minister knew for almost a year that MACH Energy was mining more coal than its approval allowed, but he sat back and did nothing.
“Despite the courts ruling that MACH Energy’s approval to mine coal out to 2048 was invalid, it told the world it had approval to do so.
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