Pat Conroy (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We are in the fifth year of this government, and we are in the fifth year of an energy policy fiasco. What have we seen? They promised a $550 cut to power prices. Instead, they've jacked it up by $1,000! And guess what else has happened? They've shut down seven coal-fired power stations—seven!—Redbank, Morwell, Wallerawang, Anglesea, Northern, Playford and Hazelwood. There have been 4,000 megawatts of coal-fired power gone under their watch. I have a message for the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister: being mates with Gina Rinehart doesn't make you friends of coalminers. Not many coalminers get free trips to India on Gina's private jet. Not many coalminers get to go to the $40,000 a year Riverview private school. I say to the Prime Minister that a $1,000 increase in electricity bills might not be much to him in Point Piper but it means a lot to the people in my constituency. It means a lot to every single constituency over here. I have another message for the Prime Minister: stop blaming others, own up to the fact that seven coal-fired power stations have closed under your watch, take responsibility and start acting like an adult government for once.

Ken O'Dowd (Flynn, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Coalmining is very important to me and Flynn. We have eight coal-fired power stations that have a life of another 10, 15 or 18 years if we come on board and support our coal-fired power stations. It is by far the cheapest form of energy in Australia.

We haven't got a problem in Queensland. The only problem we've got in Queensland is with the state government. There are too many middlemen in the middle, producing cheap electricity for Queensland industry. The Queensland government has got to be held to account for this. It's no good blaming the coal-fired power stations for the demise of the electricity industry. This is a disgrace. We cannot close another power station down in Queensland—in fact, we cannot close another power station down in Australia—until we get the energy circle and the energy mix correct. Nuclear is the next step in this line. So let's go.

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

In accordance with standing order 43, the time for members' statements has concluded.