Coogee Chemicals flags potential support for any new borders challenge

Coogee Chemicals, one of WA’s biggest privately-owned industrial groups, could support a potential new High Court challenge against the State’s hard borders, describing them as “an abuse of parliamentary power”. Coogee founder and executive director Gordon Martin says the company has lost patience with drawn out, inconsistent and sometimes “absurd” border restrictions which see Coogee struggling to move maintenance experts between its complex plants while exceptions are made for sporting teams to enter States including WA. “There is a genuine concern and a willingness to participate to a different level,” Mr Martin said, suggesting Coogee would be open to supporting a fresh constitutional challenge to hard borders. Flight Centre chief Graham Turner last week threatened a new challenge against states such as WA that still have border restrictions in place, saying that since Clive Palmer’s failed High Court bid last year “conditions have changed” because of widely available COVID-19 vaccines. It is believed Flight Centre and Coogee are already in communication though neither would confirm it yesterday. Mr Martin said West Australians have had ample opportunity to get vaccinated and the State’s borders needed to open either now or once a stipulated vaccination rate was achieved. “I think they should be open now but I’d be happy to say at 70 per cent or 80 per cent; however (Premier Mark) McGowan is now talking 90 per cent.” Mr Martin said his criticism of hard borders had nothing to do with Coogee’s performance, saying the company was “doing quite well”. “Fundamentally, it’s an abuse of parliamentary power,” he said. Mr Martin said he hoped any new constitutional challenge would help avoid future prolonged border restrictions. “I hate this bickering between the States. It’s un-Australian and it’s not right; short and long-term, its destructive.” Coogee makes, imports and stores chemicals and fuels at 10 sites around the country for a customer base covering the agricultural, industrial and minerals sectors. It also has interests in Britain, the US and Malaysia. While the group is based at its complex in Kwinana, managing director Grant Lukey works from Melbourne, meaning he has been restricted by lockdowns and border closures from visiting Coogee’s operations, particularly its major hazard facilities, since the virus arrived. “They’re not called major hazard facilities because you can run them from a desk,” Mr Martin said. “We are an essential service in WA and Queensland ... and we can’t even get our CEO allowed to travel.” As early as August last year, Coogee was expressing concern about what it saw as the “black and white” interpretation of the virus restrictions that made it difficult to fly in the specialist tradespeople it needed to service its WA processing plants. “The police are not qualified to make those decisions,” Mr Martin said today. “They’ve set themselves up as judge and jury on technical matters they have no inkling about.”