Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Chisholm for her question and congratulate her on a win. We look forward to a long and substantial contribution in this House.

The answer to dealing with rising power prices is the same as the answer to reducing emissions—that is, more renewable energy, because we know on this side of the House that clean energy is cheap energy. We know the sun doesn't send a bill, and the wind doesn't send an invoice—something that the honourable members opposite haven't worked out.

Normally, I'd say the opposition doesn't have any ideas. But, to be fair—we always try to be fair on this side—they've got one today. Their answer to rising energy prices is to put more of the most expensive form of energy, nuclear, into the system. That's their answer. That's the Leader of the Opposition's big announcement today—that he supports the most expensive form of energy available: nuclear energy. Well done, well done.

Another part of our agenda, of course, is the climate bill before the House. This is the bill which locks in our emissions reductions target, makes them the law of the land and, importantly, sends the signal to the investors around the world that the 22 failed energy policy era is over. The country has one energy policy, and it is the policy in the law of the land. There's been a very wide range of support to legislate. We've got the Business Council of Australia calling for the legislation to pass and the Australian Industry Group, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors—a range of groups, from Greenpeace to Rio Tinto, are all calling for the legislation to pass. A very broad coalition is calling for the legislation to pass.

There's a very narrow coalition opposing it though, and that's the coalition opposite. After nine years of denial and delay, they want to continue. They want to keep those nine years going longer. It just goes to show that you can change the face at the front of the shop, but they're still selling the same old dud product. This is the modern Liberal Party. What you see is what you get. They haven't changed. You can change from the member for Cook to the member for Dickson—maybe you could change again—but the product hasn't changed. They still don't accept the science of climate change. They still believe in denial and delay.

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