Geraldton MLA Ian Blayney has welcomed the adoption of a new Unsolicited Bids Guideline for the sale or lease of state-owned land.

“As Western Australia’s population grows, so does the demand for land. The Barnett Government is committed to unlocking the potential of its Crown land holdings to accommodate this growth.

“The Department of Lands is leading the Government’s Land Asset Sales Program. This is an orderly and coordinated program of sales and of surplus and under-utelised land assets.

“The proceeds from these sales will be used to reduce State debt and return revenue to the State Government to benefit Western Australia now and into the future,” said Mr Blayney.

The Unsolicited Bid Guideline has been developed to provide a transparent and consistent framework to deal with unsolicited bids received through the government’s Land Asset Sales Program.

An unsolicited bid is a market led proposal put to government by the private sector, which has not been formally requested by the Government.

The Guideline has been developed after extensive consultation with stakeholders and the community, and is based on the approach adopted in other jurisdictions in Australia.

The Government is committed to promoting transparent and competitive processes in the sale or lease of state owned land, and ensuring unsolicited proposals put to it are appropriately assessed on public interest grounds.

We recognise that circumstances may occasionally arise where it may be beneficial to deal exclusively with one party outside of a competitive process – such as when the land is not required for core government business or will have a beneficial impact on the community or environment.

All unsolicited bids would be subject to thorough government approvals processes and require State Cabinet approval.

The new guideline provides a mechanism for government to access the private sector’s expertise and innovate ideas for the benefit of the community, and will open up development across the State.

A copy of the new Unsolicited Bid guideline can be downloaded from the Lands website.