Western Australia’s mine safety body has officially moved under a new department, following a government restructure that took effect last week.
The Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety (LGIRS) was established on July 1, following a targeted reform of the state’s public sector which led to the division of the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DEMIRS) into two independent entities.
Marking a significant change in regulatory oversight, LGIRS will “support a safe, fair and resilient economy where Western Australian industries, workers, consumers and communities thrive”.
Broadly, its services include: building and energy, consumer protection, government sector labour relations, local government, private sector labour relations, racing, gaming and liquor, service delivery, and WorkSafe.
Responsibilities of the WorkSafe group will consist of overseeing regulatory and policy requirements of workers’ health and safety in the resources and general industries sectors such as mining, and safety legislation for dangerous goods, including the state’s major hazard facilities.
LGIRS will be headed by Lanie Chopping, who previously held the same position at the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries, and has more than a decade of experience in the public sector.
The other department formed out of DEMIRS is the Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration – created to administer and drive the future development of the resources industry.
Some of these public sector reforms started coming into effect last week, and will be fully implemented by the end of the year.
“These reforms will ensure we continue to create jobs in globally uncertain times, by backing our resources sector, diversifying our economy for the future and making more things here,” Premier Roger Cook said.
“We will work closely with the public sector leadership and unions as we implement these reforms over the course of this year.”
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