Craig Kelly (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for the Environment and Energy. Will the minister update the House on the government's National Energy Guarantee and how it will deliver an affordable and reliable supply of energy for hardworking families and small businesses across the nation, including in my electorate of Hughes, and is the minister aware of any alternative approaches?

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Hughes for his question. I know that he supports the government's efforts to reduce power prices and create a more reliable system. The National Energy Guarantee is a credible, workable, pro-market policy which will help lower prices and create a more reliable system. It involves no subsidies, no taxes and no trading schemes. Given that 371,500 jobs were created in the last 12 months, lower energy prices will continue to help this strong jobs growth continue.

I know that those opposite like to write books. Their front bench often looks like an Oprah Winfrey book club. We had from the member for Lilley—the second most famous old boy from Nambour high—The Good Fight. We had from the member for Fenner Battlers and Billionairesan odd title, given he is a bit underpaid. We had from the Leader of the Opposition For the Common Good, although a better title would probably have been 'If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there.' We had a book from the member for Rankin which was the member for Grayndler's favourite book—in fact, his pick of the week—because it is titled Changing Jobs. Then we discovered that the member for Port Adelaide has a book. It's a pretty bland cover, but I said, 'Don't judge a book by its cover.' It is called Climate Wars. I read it and I thought, 'What does it say?' I started to agree with it. He says, 'The truth is that we in Labor have sent too many mixed signals about climate policy in the previous years.' He said, 'We have made mistakes in both the design of our policies and their presentation.' This was the best part: 'I was on a street corner in my electorate of Port Adelaide and a guy came up and said he wasn't sold on the climate issue. "I thought you were all piss-weak—

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

The minister will withdraw.

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I withdraw, Mr Speaker. But then, after hearing about that, I said, 'What did the rest of the book say?' Importantly, the book said—

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

The Minister—

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I withdraw, Mr Speaker. The book also said, importantly, 'We need a substantial level of bipartisan support'. The book also said, 'There needs to be a consensus between the two major parties.' Ironically, the book also said that the AMC model was a central element of Labor's 2016 election platform. The Labor Party—through the words of the member for Port Adelaide—has said that Labor has made mistakes in the past and are looking for bipartisan opportunities. We are now presenting them with the expert recommendation of the Energy Security Board, so if Labor want to get on board, they can do so.

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

Before I call the Leader of the Opposition, I say to the minister—

Mr Pyne interjecting—

Can the Leader of the House cease interjecting just for a second? The Minister has withdrawn, but I say to him that if there is a repeat of that I will have no choice but to take severe action against him. I ask him to be mindful of not only the audience watching but the audience here in Parliament House.

Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Under the Prime Minister's latest energy policy, will energy retailers be able to trade to meet their carbon emission reduction obligations? Yes or no?

Mr Fletcher interjecting—

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Shut up, Fletch, you moron.

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

The member for McEwen will withdraw.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I did! I just got up and I said, 'I withdraw'.

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

I better hear you say you withdraw, or you will be withdrawing from the chamber. This is not a negotiation.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's not. This is the third time I have gotten up and said, 'I withdraw.'

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

Thank you.

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In the national electricity market, twice as much energy is traded as is dispatched. There is an enormous trading system within the energy market, both trading over the counter and through the Australian Stock Exchange. That won't change. That is the virtue of the model that has been presented—the mechanism that has been presented—by the Energy Security Board. Rather than having a subsidies scheme like the Renewable Energy Target or a clean energy target that operates outside the market, you have market rules both in terms of guaranteeing reliability and guaranteeing a level of emissions consistent with Paris. Within those constraints, trading can occur freely. That is why retailers, who are those burdened by those constraints, are able to achieve the mix of generation sources that suits them. They will all be able to find the lowest cost and most competitive way to deliver on those two obligations. That is the mechanism. That is why it's been recommended by the Energy Security Board.

Those on the other side who are keen students of energy policy will know that John Pierce, the chairman of the Energy Market Commission, has been proposing an approach like this for years—for at least seven years, he said today. He has always been a critic of the renewable energy target, or evolutions of it, because it does not operate within the confines of the market and therefore does not allow participants to achieve what we all seek to achieve—well, I hope the honourable members on the other side will finally see reason and recognise that what we have here is a real opportunity to make a break with the mistakes of the past, a real game changer, recommended by the experts. It's not a proposal that the minister and I cooked up; this is a recommendation from the experts. It is built on the foundations of the Finkel review. It has been praised and endorsed by the Chief Scientist. It comes from a body established on the recommendation of the Chief Scientist.

This is the mechanism that can end the climate wars and deliver affordable, reliable energy for Australians and meet our emissions reduction obligations. Surely at some point Labor has to stop the politicking and get on board for affordability, reliability and responsibility in Australia's energy system.

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

My question to the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources and Minister for Resources and Northern Australia. Will the Deputy Prime Minister update the House on actions the government is taking to ensure that hardworking businesses and families like those in my electorate of Dawson are guaranteed an affordable and reliable energy supply? Is he aware of any alternative approaches?

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

I thank the member for Dawson for his question. I know that the member is very aware of the fact that today we have 371,500 more Australians in jobs than a year ago—that's the difference a coalition government makes; we actually get people into work—and a 5.5 per cent unemployment rate, which is also a great example of good governance and good management.

But the member for Dawson would also be aware of the problems in North Queensland—very aware of the problems in North Queensland—where the cost of electricity per tonne for sugar has gone from $35 in 2012 to $135 in 2016; and, for cane, from $4 in 2012 to $15 a tonne in 2016. This has brought out people such as Paul Schembri, a cane grower from Mackay. I know we both know him very well. He said the cost of electricity for Queensland cane farmers has increased by 130 per cent in the last eight years; at this rate, it will render large parts of our industry uneconomic. Energy costs have become the No. 1 cost threat to our industry. Queensland, now under a Labor government, has the highest power prices in Australia, which is a remarkable effort because they had to go around the other Labor state of South Australia. Right now, we have the Queensland energy minister, Mark Bailey, who said on 18 October:

We are saying to Canberra we are committed to our state-based 50 per cent renewable energy because it works …

Because it works? It works in making people poorer! It works in sending people out of a job! It certainly works very well if you want blackouts!

Then we've got the member for Herbert. We actually can get jobs up there—they have 21.4 per cent unemployment in Townsville—but the member for Herbert says, in regard to the Adani Carmichael mine, she has no personal opinion because she is 'totally irrelevant'. Isn't that great that the people of Townsville have sent down someone who, by their own admission, says they are totally irrelevant? I can tell you the member for Dawson is not totally irrelevant. He's very relevant. He is not driven by the Labor Party policies of activated almond and turmeric lattes or the Labor Party policies of wind-chime power and dreamcatcher nets!

That's where their power policy comes from. We believe in coal-fired power. We believe in gas-fired power. We believe in hydro. We believe in people having a job. We believe in the people of Ayr. We believe in the people of Home Hill. We are going to make sure that these people have a job. We do not think that blue-collar workers are, basically, politically irrelevant. What we see in the Labor Party all the time is that policy is driven by the green movement. They have given up on working-class people. They have given up on manufacturing jobs. They have no vision for Australia. They have no vision for Queensland. They do not have the confidence anymore of the once-great Labor Party that they had been.