Tania Lawrence (Hasluck, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 23 August this year I hosted the Hasluck green energy jobs and skills roundtable in Perth in order to help inform the Jobs and Skills Summit and the government's white paper process. Around our crowded table were industry representatives, union leaders, heads of training organisations and delegates from state ministries and departments. I was ably assisted by Brad Weir from IMS Consulting as facilitator, and I was impressed by the candour of the participants and by the breadth and depth of experience in the room.

We heard constructive ideas from all present, including Rio Tinto, Woodside, Province Resources, METS Ignited, Penske Australia, Synergy, Horizon Power, Future Battery Industries CRC, JET Charge, Hofmann Engineering, Intercontinental Energy, NHOA Energy, Thales New Energy, Connect Source, Adarsh Australia, the CFMEU, the AWU, North Metro TAFE, and the state ministers of education, training, tourism, science, innovation, mines, petroleum and energy.

The roundtable, which focused on opportunities and challenges in the renewables sector, identified many areas for further consideration, including setting additional interim targets to net zero at state and federal level; setting both domestic and export targets for the production and manufacture of renewables; reservation of a supply guarantee for essential minerals; review of government investment risk parameters; guaranteeing government procurement at useful levels across all departments; and providing long-term government contracts.

We discussed the need for frameworks for more livable communities in the regions where the new industries will flourish; improving the alignment of VET and university courses with workforce planning data; nationwide licensing standards and competency tests; modular training and more work placement programs for students; retention risk measures for firms taking on apprentices; improving apprentice pay and conditions; and reviewing the visa system to allow easy access to skilled migrants for businesses that have a healthy apprentice program in place.

I thank all participants in the Hasluck roundtable and hope to carry on this work with them in the future. In the end, what do industry really need from government? Sometimes they do need support and in a timely manner, but what they need at all times is consistency and leadership. They need clear intent. They need overarching goals and targets that are set, stuck to, regularly reviewed and, if possible, improved over time. Our government has already started this work, at the Jobs and Skills Summit, with leadership and goal setting, allowing for periodic review, heeding recommendations and, all the time, being receptive to innovative ideas and solutions. There is another word for this. It's called governing.