ROADS minister Duncan Gay has been slammed for resorting to grubby insults yet again as he scrambled to defend the lack of transparency surrounding the WestCONnex toll road.
St Peters residents who blocked WestCONnex trucks from entering the Alexandria Landfill last Friday after witnessing days of unsafe asbestos removal were attacked as “nasty little anarchists” by Gay, who called the blockade “one of the most miserable, despicable acts”.
Gay made the bizarre outburst during a 2GB interview today as he was questioned about when the environmental impact statement (EIS) and traffic modelling for WestCONnex would be released.
Contrary to claims made by the WestCONnex Delivery Authority, Gay also confirmed that the asbestos removal was part of the site “remediation”, which is not supposed to occur until after the EIS is completed and planning approval granted.
“There’s something very wrong about a toll road when the only way you can defend it is by insulting residents who are concerned about the health of their children and communities,” said WestCONnex ActionGroup spokesperson Janet Dandy-Ward.
“We watched poorly covered WestCONnex trucks leaving the dump with this killer substance for days after getting less than 24 hours’ notice that this would happen.
“For Gay to suggest he’s ‘fixing something up’ for our community by removing asbestos unsafely and ahead of the EIS would be laughable if the potential consequences weren’t so tragic.
“And let’s not forget what he wants to replace this with: a huge interchange and unfiltered stacks that will spew toxic pollution into our community – including pollutants that have been placed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in the same deadly category as asbestos!
“Such crude insults demean Duncan Gay’s position as Minister and betray his increasing desperation to avoid answering the real questions about WestCONnex.
“If Minister Gay wants people to stop protesting against WestCONnex then he has to stop the secrecy. He can start by releasing the WestCONnex business case and explaining why they’re remediating this toxic landfill ahead of the EIS,” said Ms Dandy-Ward.
Media Contact: Garth Montgomery 0408 864 851, Pauline Lockie 0414 470 106