Keith Pitt (Hinkler, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There's a very famous quote that goes like this:

Back then, government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

So said former president Ronald Reagan. We are seeing from this Labor government, no matter how many decades have passed, that it stays true today. We see reports that subsidies will now be provided for electricity and gas. We've seen this experiment in Germany, where over US$200 billion in subsidies have been given to domestic gas and electricity prices and industry.

Are those opposite seriously suggesting that a third-year hairdressing apprentice paying 30c in the dollar will be subsidising companies like Visy? This is madness. The solution is more supply, yet we saw cuts in the most recent budgets—cuts to those things that will bring on gas and that will bring on more supply in Australia, particularly in Victoria, which is where the gas is needed. What we are seeing from those opposite in the media are proposals to borrow money to subsidise for high prices, because they are not willing to fix the solution, which is more supply.

On the road to 'Blackout' Bowen's energy nirvana, you'd better take a candle because you're going to need one to see the footpath. That is all that will happen here: more borrowed money and more difficulty for Australians who are doing it tough. You need more supply to fix this problem into the future.