George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister representing the Minister for Resources and Northern Australia. Will the Deputy Prime Minister outline to the House the government's approach to securing jobs and investment across Australia while also protecting our environment? Is he aware of any threats to critical investments such as the Carmichael mine delivering much needed jobs and economic development in regional Australia?

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for his question. We know how important the Carmichael mine is. We know how important it is in underwriting the jobs, especially for miners, in Central Queensland. It is incredibly important. And it is incredibly important that we stand behind this $16.5 billion project, because we need to drive jobs into that area. It is also incredibly important that we understand some of the misnomers that are peddled around. Misnomers such as it being on the Great Barrier Reef have to be dealt with. It is three hundred kilometres from the Great Barrier Reef—about the same distance as Goondiwindi is from Byron Bay or Parkes is from Sydney.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I will take the interjection there. We should also remember Justice McMurdo—

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and Transport) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You're struggling there!

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The only way you ever get to say something is if you interject, because you never get a question, do you!

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Prime Minister will ignore the interjections.

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Maribyrnong should give the poor old fellow a question once in a blue moon. Give him a question. Help him out. Help your workmate out. Justice McMurdo, of the Queensland Supreme Court, said that if the Carmichael mine proceeded it would not increase the amount of global greenhouse gases or any environment impact resulting from those gases. There would be the same or greater harm if the mine did not proceed. What we need from the Australian Labor Party is support for coal miners. It was disappointing last night to hear the member for Shortland saying, to quote from the Hansard:

The truth is that our power station fleet is very old.

He then went on to say:

The replacement is very unlikely to be new coal-fired power.

That is saying something to the people of the Hunter Valley. When are you going to stand up for the coalminers of the Hunter Valley? When are you going to start believing in the miners of the Hunter Valley? When are you going to stand up for them? When are you going to change the policy of your party and stand behind the Carmichael mine? Stand by the Carmichael mine so that the Labor Party can once more start standing up for blue-collar workers. They can start standing up for blue-collar workers, start believing in blue-collar workers, rather than believing in Balmain.

Balmain is fine! Coffee shops are fine! But coalmines are all right too. We stand behind coalmines and we look forward to the Australian Labor Party and the former head of the AWU, who turns his back on coalminers—and the camera is fair and square on the back of your head as we speak!—turning around and start believing in their core constituency.

And whilst you are at it: give the member for Grayndler a question, for God's sake! Help him out!

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I seek leave to table the comments made by the member for Chisholm on the Adani mine immediately before question time today on Sky News.

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's on the public record!

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's a transcript. Do you have a transcript?

Leave not granted.