Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I am directing my comments to the question on carbon pricing and jobs. I was quoting former Prime Minister Howard, because he was alerting the Australian nation to the fact that when you deal with these big public policy questions you have to be very clear about the best way to do it and be very honest about the costs. We have been very clear about the best way to do it, how to do it at the least possible cost to the economy and how that will mean that our economy continues to grow, that jobs continue to grow, that income per person continues to grow. As we go about this process of change we will be working to support those industries that are on a journey of change, including aluminium. In that regard I would point to today's media release of the relevant minister, the Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, announcing the terms and conditions of the way $1 billion will be used to help Australian manufacturing move to a clean energy future.

In asking the question, the member is assuming that somehow there is some costless way of dealing with climate change. He should be honest about the fact that the coalition has selected the most costly way you can possibly go about it. If he was worried about aluminium, if he was worried about jobs, if he was worried about our economy he would be walking to the dispatch box and recanting the rubbish that is coalition policy today and re-endorsing the words of former Prime Minister Howard. But no-one in the modern Liberal Party will ever do that.

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