Alan Tudge (Aston, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

If you do not believe me or you do not believe the essential logic that increasing the cost structure for Australian manufacturers is bad for those manufacturers, then maybe you will listen to Manufacturing Australia, which says that 'it will be the death knell for manufacturing in Australia.'

What is the point of all of this pain? Will it reduce emissions? Is this policy which is going to penalise our manufacturers actually going to reduce emissions? No, it will not. What it will probably do is make the overseas manufacturers more competitive, which means that some of our businesses will shut shop here and open businesses in China, where the standards are lower; hence, global emissions, which are what count, may actually grow. This is the ridiculousness of this carbon tax. This is the farce. This is the worst of all possible times to be introducing a carbon tax, when we have manufacturers across the country laying off workers and struggling as it is with a high dollar and fierce competition. They did not need an additional tax which will apply to their businesses and not to their international competitors. (Time expired)

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