John Murphy (Reid, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to enthusiastically support the motion moved by my colleague the member for Throsby. Firstly, let us be very clear of the distinction between our government and the misguided contribution made by the member for Flinders a few moments ago. Our government has always expressed the need to mitigate the effects of climate change and assist our economy to transition to a clean energy future. In contrast, the opposition has held several different positions and still remains divided on whether climate change even exists. The Leader of the Opposition has just reached his seventh position on climate change, and I doubt that it will be his last. Our government believes that a carbon price is the cheapest and fairest way to cut pollution and drive investment in a clean energy future. Even the shadow Treasurer believes a carbon price is inevitable.

A carbon price will raise revenue from large polluters, and this will assist households, support jobs and tackle climate change. Even without household assistance, Professor Garnaut makes it very clear that the impact of carbon pricing is small compared with other significant reforms, such as the GST. Our government wants our economy to continue to prosper and we want our environment to be preserved for future generations. Our government wants to ensure that local industries are not left behind and that we consult them to help make that transition to a clean energy future, as the member for Throsby just described. That is why our government has continued to state that every cent raised by carbon pricing will go towards assisting households, assisting businesses to make the transition and tackling climate change.

Many businesses appreciate the necessity to move to a clean energy future and have already implemented their own sustainable policies to remain competitive. For instance, GMH strives to minimise emissions and waste through the use of innovative technologies and environmentally compatible materials and processes. TNT has developed a program to raise awareness of climate change and to seek to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Their primary objective is to reduce the environmental impact of TNT’s operations and boost the financial performance of TNT by improving fuel efficiency.

Even a local council in my electorate of Reid, the City of Canada Bay Council, has been very active in implementing environmentally sustainable practices and codes that have been recognised and praised at federal, state and international levels. Other industry leaders are actively seeking a fast and effective response about carbon pricing from our government for the long-term benefit of our country and have warned against inaction. The Chairman of Origin Energy, Kevin McCann, said in October last year:

Origin considers the best way to set a carbon price is an emissions trading scheme, however many of the same benefits can be delivered by a carbon tax.

Jac Nasser, Chairman of BHP Billiton, stated in November last year:

Economies that defer action are likely to face higher long-term costs, as global investment is redirected to early movers.

As one of the most carbon intensive economies, if Australia acts strongly to reduce its carbon footprint, its emissions-intensive sectors are likely to maintain or improve their competitiveness in a low-emissions world.

The government is also looking at the challenges emissions-intensive trade-exposed industries face. The government has made it clear that we will help the EITEIs transition to a low-pollution future. We do not want to see jobs going offshore. We want to support existing jobs while simultaneously creating new ones, ensuring the carbon price mechanism is fair and protects our international competitiveness.

Thirty-two countries and 10 US states already have emissions trading schemes and many more countries are planning to introduce an ETS. The opposition is well aware of this, as is the member for Flinders, as the list of countries already operating with an ETS is noted in the opposition’s direct action policy, if you can call it a policy. The UK has had an ETS for several years. Germany, France, Italy and our close neighbours in New Zealand have all implemented an ETS. It is clear that other major economies, governments, local manufacturers and community organisations are taking action on climate change because there are obvious benefits for industry, the environment and the economy.

While the opposition continues to argue internally about what to do, our government has been very clear that we believe climate change is real and that it is human induced. The opposition voted for my motion to that effect earlier this year. We believe that implementing a carbon price will cut pollution and drive investment in clean energy. We will provide incentives to business to cut pollution and the necessary assistance to households to support them through the transition. The government will continue discussions with relevant stakeholders in the community to ensure that we have the right design for our country, for our future. I strongly support the member for Throsby’s motion.

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