Opposition Leader Peter Dutton heckled by protesters opposed to building a nuclear power station in Collie




October 18 2024
ABC News



In short:
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has been met by angry protesters in Collie, who oppose his plan to build a nuclear power station in the town.

Mr Dutton was meeting with local shire representatives and was ushered to a waiting car as the small group pleaded with him to speak with them.

Mr Dutton said Collie residents "well and truly" support the proposal, that it was "silly" to suggest he hid from protesters and accused the ABC of bias.


Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has been heckled by protesters after holding a meeting in a WA town where he plans to build a nuclear power station.

Mr Dutton is in WA for a Liberal party conference and today visited the South West town of Collie – one of seven places nationwide where a power station could be based under the Coalition's nuclear policy.

While his office would not confirm the visit with journalists, the opposition leader spent Friday morning meeting with representatives from the local council in Collie.

A small group of protesters opposed to the nuclear power station plan gathered outside the building where the meeting was held, holding an Indigenous flag.

When Mr Dutton emerged from the meeting, they yelled 'if you want to come and work on our land, come and talk to us."

"We had a great meeting with the local council, they were very obliging, very happy to have that conversation," he told reporters as he walked to his waiting car.

He did not respond to questions about why it was a private meeting or why he didn't speak with the waiting group.

A group of people hold up a flag outside a building
Protesters gather outside the meeting held by Peter Dutton in Collie.

"Why do you want to destroy our land? Come and talk to the traditional owners. We're peaceful people," they yelled at Mr Dutton as his car drove off.

"Shame on that man."

'Majority' support nuclear in Collie: Dutton
Speaking in Busselton later in the day, Mr Dutton said there was "well and truly" majority support for the Collie nuclear proposal.

Mr Dutton said he didn't want to meet with local Indigenous leaders.

"I accept the view of the few people who were there — I think there were half a dozen people that were there protesting," he said.

"I accept that they don't support nuclear power, that's their right in a democracy. But the vast majority of people do I believe in the local community."



WA Labor minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said Mr Dutton had "snuck" into Collie.

"If Peter Dutton was proud of his nuclear plan he'd be very happy to talk about it openly in Collie," she said.

Mr Dutton said any suggestion he "hid" from speaking to residents in Collie was "silly".

“We didn't, of course. We met with the shire president, we met with the councillors who represent the local community."

He said a nuclear plant would create "literally thousands" of jobs in Collie but could not say how much it would cost or when it would be built.

Mr Dutton accused the ABC of having an "ideological position" against nuclear power.

Pro-nuclear event in Collie
One of the protesters who gathered in Collie was Indigenous woman Stevie Anderson, who is against nuclear power and said she had lived in Collie since 1999.

She claims she was blocked from entering a pro-nuclear event in Collie on Thursday night despite registering in advance.

The meeting was held by nuclear advocacy organisation Nuclear For Australia and included an expert panel.

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"I was rejected from the front door, I was told to get off from security," she said.

"Their reason was that maybe I was there to interrupt the consultation but I explained that I was a local, I was there to listen.

"I'm here on behalf of the elders and I was denied to actually go in with everyone else – and I felt really rejected."

She told the ABC locals are concerned about the prospect of a nuclear power plant being built near the town.


In a statement, a spokesperson for Nuclear for Australia said more than 200 people joined the meeting.

"We became aware of dozens of anti-nuclear protesters that had registered to attend the event with the intent to disrupt proceedings.

"This included known anti-nuclear protesters who had travelled over two hours from Perth and beyond to disrupt the event.

"We always take the security and amenity of the public, our team and our volunteers seriously."

Inside the briefing
Chris Martin has lived in Collie for 40 years and did attend the pro-nuclear meeting.

He told the ABC he had questions about the costings and time frames of the Coalition's plans, but said he wasn't given the opportunity to ask them.

I would also have heckled Peter Dutton if he'd come anywhere near me today.

Got this in the mail today... "personally" addressed to me. 

Going on about his nuclear power plans and... a 'bonus' Support the Liberal Party form (edit: with a 'helpful' prepaid return envelope) where you can put in your card details and make a donation.

Guess what I did with it? The bottom picture sums it up nicely. 

Thanks Phil.

And... there it goes! Just before I lifted the lid.

philperth2010 wrote on Oct 18^th, 2024 at 5:38pm:



Well, if Cwissy Bowels closes down the coal mines then the owners will get nuffin'. So converting them to nuclear makes eminent sense. Not least because the powerlines to transmit the power is already in place.

Frank wrote on Oct 19^th, 2024 at 1:40am:



If it had been a trump rally you'd be claiming it was the 'biggest crowd ever'