Jodie Belyea (Dunkley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am pleased to speak on the Future Made in Australia Bill. I have noticed that many members in this place have contributed by speaking on this bill. I thought I'd better not miss my opportunity, considering south-east Melbourne is one of Australia's largest manufacturing regions, with more manufacturing jobs than greater Adelaide and Western Sydney. A future made in Australia is simple. It's all about an economic plan for a more secure and independent future for Australia.

Australia sits before a unique opportunity. There is a global transition afoot to net zero. Australia must take an active role in this transition, not just for the economic benefit of our nation but because it's in our national interest to do so. Australia is well placed to play a key role in the decarbonisation of economies. We have advantages in the development of renewable energy technologies, vast reserves of minerals required for the construction of these technologies, an abundance of sea, wind and scorching sun, and highly skilled labour that can slot in to meet these manufacturing capabilities.

The changing geostrategic landscape has also meant we must have sovereignty over manufacturing. Our supply chains are under extreme pressure due to global conflict, increasing fragmentation and global competition. Over the last few years, COVID, war and geopolitical tensions have shown there is an undeniable, compelling reason to have more control over the industries important to Australia.

As I stated before, the transition to net zero can have great economic and industrial benefits for Australia. The Albanese Labor government's Future Made in Australia will unlock private investment in these future industries, create jobs across the country, and build a stronger and more resilient economy powered by renewable energy. It recognises our future growth prospects lie here in our great nation—a nation that has the industrial capacity, resources, skills and energy to make us into a globally attractive investment destination.

Yes, private sector is responding to these opportunities, but there is also a role for government in this transitionary process. I would go as far to say that government must have a role in providing economic incentives due to the broader national interests at play. These incentives will assist Australia to take up the opportunities created by our trade partners and comparative advantages to other countries. It will enable Australia to capitalise on opportunities in areas like critical minerals, processing, green metals, clean energy technologies and low-carbon liquid fuels.

If I may, I might go briefly into some of the details of the bill. The bill will codify a National Interest Framework. This is much needed and will help to better align economic incentives with the national interests of Australia. Legislating the framework will provide certainty to the investment community, which is critical to attracting private funding at scale. There'll be two streams of the framework: the net zero transformation stream and the economic resilience and security stream, essentially just covering sectors that could have a sustained comparative advantage in a net-zero global economy and the sectors where some level of domestic capability is a necessity.

I note also the set of community benefit principles will be applied to the Future Made in Australia. The bill will ensure that the Future Made in Australia has a mechanism that can be used to implement the community benefit principles as required. This will go to ensuring that investments develop secure jobs that are not only safe but also have good conditions and pay; that they boost more skilled and inclusive workforces by investing in skills development and giving people opportunities for broader workforce participation; that they engage collaboratively with and achieve positive outcomes for local communities, such as First Nations communities and communities directly affected by the transition to net zero; that they strengthen domestic industrial capabilities including through stronger local supply chains; and that they demonstrate transparency and compliance in relation to the management of tax affairs, including benefits received under Future Made in Australia supports.

The Future Made in Australia is also supported by other Labor government initiatives, including fee-free TAFE. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the South East Melbourne Manufacturers Alliance, the peak industry association made up of 230 companies in south-east Melbourne. They provide a strong, clear voice for manufacturers in our region. SEMMA and its board members and organisations are working hard to maintain the south-east as the premier manufacturing region in Australia. We need organisations like SEMMA, with strategies to guide the work and vision of a future made in Australia.

A future made in Australia is quite simple and, frankly, deserving of support from every member in this House if we wish to have a country that has sovereignty and is able to support our own needs in the community. We all want Australia to be a country that makes things here. We'll put the talents of our people and our incredible natural resources to work by making things here, instead of just importing our own things all the time. We can manufacture more solar panels with the minerals from the country and not just ship off the minerals to other countries.

Under Labor, we're generating 25 per cent more renewable energy, and we've ticked off enough renewable projects to power three million homes. This is a significant achievement already. The Future Made in Australia will boost more projects like these, powering us forward into a net-zero economy. This is good for our economy, good for jobs, good for our sovereignty and good for the nation, making Australia wealthier and more secure against global forces and pandemics. A stronger economy made right here—a future made in Australia.

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