Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

We don't deny climate change, but what we absolutely deny is that the Labor Party can change it back—that a policy from this chamber has the capacity to change the climate back to something that is more tolerable so that we can deal with droughts and deal with fires.

I look forward to this chamber having the capacity to have a cogent debate about alternative forms of zero emissions, such as nuclear power. If we are going to move on, if you do want to transition, then nuclear power, of course, is going to be one of the mechanisms to do that. It would stand to reason, as coal is our major export, that we have to have the capacity for the most efficient use of that coal, so the least amount of coal produces the greatest amount of power. That would be an effective mechanism.

I know that you have trouble in Central Queensland and you have trouble in the Hunter Valley because you don't support workers anymore. You have given up on those workers. We look forward to looking after them, to bring them into the National Party fold and to make sure that they become part of our constituency as they are. If you wish to go down the path of continuing to move away from the workers who once thought the Labor Party was their party then we're waiting with open arms to take them over.

See this speech in context