Ted O'Brien (Fairfax, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Let's compare the Liberal-National coalition on this side of the House to the Labor-Green alliance on the other. We are pragmatic; they are ideological. We back the Australian people; they back themselves. We believe in lower taxes; they believe in higher taxes. We are for small government; they are for big government.

These contrasting values are now becoming clearly defined and reflected in our energy debate. Take renewables, for instance. While both sides agree that renewables play an important role in Australia's energy mix, we on this side of the House have faith in renewables, which now provide cheaper energy than non-renewables. Thus, we believe the renewable sector is ready to stand on its own two feet in the marketplace. They, however, do not have faith in renewables, which is why they want to provide an extra $66 billion to subsidise them. That equates to over $8,500 per Australian household. That's the extent to which those opposite wish to tax the Australian people. Labor equals big government, equals big taxes, and equals far bigger electricity prices.

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