Senator MARGETTS(10.48 a.m.) —In relation to the issue of validation, we have seen massive loss to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders of the right to negotiate. Once again, state governments have sabotaged the native title process and will, with the assistance of both the government and the ALP, get away with it. Why is it that conservative state governments—and in this sense I include the Goss Labor government—cannot bring themselves to accept native title and simply sit down with Aboriginal people and discuss how their acts will affect traditional Aboriginal lands and people?

Senator Minchin said—and I would like to strongly protest his use of the terminology—that the law was changed by the Wik decision. That is nonsense. The law was unclear. Senator Minchin himself said so during the Mabo debate. In fact, he clearly said that his reading was that pastoral leases did not extinguish native title. The High Court has clarified the law; the High Court has not changed the law.

We know that in Western Australia there are many examples where the Court government have ignored the future act provisions. We know that they are, and were, sabotaging the Native Title Act. We know that there were three very expensive abortive native title High Court challenges and I think it is quite clear why the Court government in Western Australia would like to make the issue go away. But it is not going away and I stand strongly with the Australian Democrats on this issue. It is not good enough for the ALP as well to merely get into what they think is pragmatic and election politics in order to prepare for the Queensland election. This is a massive issue which sends a signal to state governments that they are not subject to Commonwealth laws. I wonder whether that is the message that the Labor Party are wanting to give to current and future state governments.