Ed Husic (Chifley, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

r HUSIC (—) (): I move, with pleasure:

That the amendments be agreed to.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is a very good day indeed. Last night the Senate passed the $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund legislation. This is one of the biggest ever investments in our nation's manufacturing capability and one of our key election commitments. Throughout the election campaign I made it very clear I want to see a future made in Australia. I want manufacturing jobs in Australia. I want value-adding here in Australia. Our resources sector has played such an important role for many decades, and we should continue to export our resources. But where possible we should value-add, because they're the options: export our resources, wait for the jobs to be created, wait for the value-add, then import it back at greater value—or can we do better than that? The lesson of the pandemic isn't just, 'Can we?'; it's 'We must do better than that,' because while we're at the end of global supply chains our economy is vulnerable.

This legislation will support Australian innovation and Australian industry. Australia has always been good at innovation. We've been good at research; we've been good at breakthroughs. What we haven't been good at is commercialising those opportunities in order to maximise job creation in this country. This particularly will create jobs in our outer suburbs, like in the electorate of Aston; in our regions; and throughout the entire country as well. We're backing Australian manufacturing, creating more secure work for Australians. There are seven key areas the fund will invest in: renewables and low-emission technologies; medical science; transport; value-adding in the agriculture, forestry and fisheries sector; value-adding in resources; defence capability; and enabling capabilities.

One of the things we know, and I'll be speaking at a conference in Western Australia on Sunday, is we have enormous benefit—just as we benefited from the resources we had in the 20th century and continue to have.

The growth in areas like lithium, cobalt, nickel and copper is quite extraordinary. We have everything that goes into a solar panel and yet we don't make enough of them here. We make very few. We have everything that goes into a battery. Already 10 per cent of the automotive vehicles around the world have a lithium battery, but that process is set to accelerate massively. The Inflation Reduction Act in the United States is a powerful piece of legislation. If we don't compete, we will see capital sucked from Australia to the United States.

We need to recognise the opportunities which are there to grow our economy and to grow jobs. Foreign investment can be one thing we harness as well to create jobs here in Australia. I met with Reliance, a major company in India, when I was there recently. They want to invest billions of dollars here in Australia, value-adding and creating jobs here in our region. There is an enormous opportunity to do so.

We need to learn the lesson that was created when those opposite were in government and they told the car industry to leave Australia, because that had a massive impact on the economy. High-value manufacturing isn't just about the direct jobs that are created. One of the things that the AUKUS project is about isn't just the direct jobs. It's the multiplier impact throughout the economy that occurs. Most of those jobs will be in our regions, our outer suburban areas and those industrial estates in Western Sydney, eastern Melbourne, around the Hunter Valley, the Illawarra, around Western Australia and around Adelaide and the hub that we will establish there to build our nuclear powered submarines in the future.

And they will be around Queensland. Just to give one example, Tritium in South-East Queensland is a company that produces the fastest electric vehicle charging station in the world. It's creating jobs in South-East Queensland. They have also set up a factory in Tennessee in the United States. I want us to make more things here. I think that is very much in Australia's interest. We need to harness that opportunity.

The National Reconstruction Fund will use the Clean Energy Finance Corporation model not only to support private sector investment to support job creation; also, importantly, it will produce a return to taxpayers just like the Clean Energy Finance Corporation does. That is why this is such important legislation.

I want to thank the crossbenchers in the House of Representatives and in the Senate for their support. They chose to participate in debate and to put forward their arguments, some of which were agreed to and some of which weren't. The ones that were consistent with the plan that we took to the election we were prepared to support as long as the integrity of what we put forward was maintained. It's beyond my comprehension why those opposite choose to be the observers of Australian politics rather than the participants, but that is what they have become with their relentless opposition to everything.

The member for New England says they are participating at the moment pretty well. They should have a bit of a look at what happened on Saturday in New South Wales to see how well their brand is going at the moment. The Liberals and the Nationals lost seats to the Labor Party.

The fact is that we will continue to put forward constructive ideas. We will continue to engage in this parliament to get things done. My government is absolutely committed to implementing the agenda that we took to the election. We received a mandate at that election, with a majority in this House of Representatives. This is very much in our national interest. I commend the bill to the House. I commend the amendments to the House as well. I conclude by congratulating my friend here, the Minister for Industry and Science, who has argued the case so strongly and so effectively for this important piece of legislation. It has been welcomed by industry and business, by unions and by those in communities who will benefit from the sort of growth that can occur.

Just to give one example of what can occur, Maryborough in Queensland was a town that was not doing as well as it had in the past. When rail manufacturing was brought back to Maryborough, through the Downer EDI site, a manufacturing hub that has operated for more than a century—I've met workers there who are part of a third generation, workers whose father and grandfather have worked on the same site in Maryborough—that town is now thriving. Through the renewables sector, particularly renewables manufacturing, they are expanding, because that one big industry has meant skills that can then be used throughout advanced manufacturing, and these skills are attracting businesses and industry to the area. That is a town that is doing so well there in Central Queensland. That can be replicated around the country.

Part of my vision for this country is cleaner, cheaper energy driving advanced manufacturing, with Australians being skilled up for those jobs. That is the future opportunity that we can take, if we have the courage, the vision and the insight to seize it. This legislation will facilitate that, and I commend it to the House.

Sussan Ley (Farrer, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The coalition will be opposing this bill, as amended by the Senate. The National Reconstruction Fund Corporation Bill 2023 remains significantly flawed, even with the amendments that the Senate agreed to. The government has, unfortunately, made a habit of rushing poorly considered legislation through the parliament. The National Reconstruction Fund Corporation Bill is no exception.

This bill, as amended by the Senate, poses more questions than answers. Key issues remain. Consultation has been rushed. Parliamentary oversight has been sidestepped. Advice on critical matters was not sought by the government in their drafting of the bill, nor in their response to the amendments that were agreed to. Questions from the parliament remain unanswered, as debate was guillotined in the Senate last night. There is not a single clause or amendment in this legislation that will tackle: the high and rising costs of energy; a shortage of skilled workers; a disrupted supply chain,; or the red tape impacting our industries. This bill remains silent on these issues that are critical to the success of our manufacturers.

Instead, it offers government loans and equities. Not once have I heard these called for by our industries. It is not their primary concern. This legislation, returned from the Senate, delivers on what the government arrogantly suggests our manufacturers need, while failing to address the pressures that our manufacturers urgently seek to resolve.

In securing passage of this bill through the Senate last night, the government has made a desperate, dodgy deal with the Australian Greens, prohibiting the fund from investing into coal, gas or forestry projects. Yet, the government could not clearly articulate the implications of this amendment when asked in the Senate. Nor have they asked for any advice or consulted industry as they hastily accepted this really bad deal for our manufacturers.

I can tell you that the implications are indeed dire. While the government states that the fund would never have invested in the particular industries now prohibited in this bill and reaffirmed by the other place, we were regularly reminded before the election about industries such as forestry that would actually be a beneficiary of this fund. This legislation, as passed by the Senate, prohibits investment into our important forestry sector, another broken promise from this government. When asked in the Senate how far-reaching these amendments will be down the forestry, gas or coal supply chains, the minister dithered and dodged, providing no assurances and no clear answers. This bill also lacks the appropriate transparency warranted by a fund of this scale, size and complexity.

The Senate was ready to ask questions on behalf of industry, which is confused and concerned about this legislation. And yet the government chose to guillotine debate in order to avoid scrutiny. This legislation allows the National Reconstruction Fund $15 billion to invest in a wide range of industries, all with different risk profiles, market conditions and competitive pressures. Sensible amendments to introduce additional scrutiny measures were opposed by the government in the Senate. This bill before the House, as amended by the Senate, is a blank cheque for the minister to deliver on whatever priorities may be given at a given point in time. The minister suggests that this is a blue-collar bill, but the reality is that it's anything but. If the minister cared about blue-collar jobs he would put up a fight and address the crippling energy prices being made worse by his government. Instead, he just stays silent, just like this legislation does on this critical issue.

This is a bad bill which does not respond to the questions and concerns raised through the limited consultation process with industry. This bad bill does not respond to the concerns raised by the opposition or, indeed, by the crossbench. For matters so critical to the future prosperity of Australia, there should always be an open approach to accountability, scrutiny and concern. We will be opposing this bill as amended by the Senate.

Ed Husic (Chifley, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

When I was walking into the chamber, I saw one of the members here and I thought straightaway about what we're trying to do in terms of the significance of this National Reconstruction Fund Corporation Bill 2023, and the impact of past decisions on this person's community. I thought about those people who took great pride in what they did in making things; seeing their products on Australian roads and knowing that they had a part in Aussie-made manufacturing.

I thought of the member for Spence and his communities, particularly those at Elizabeth, who were hit hard by this whole waving away of the value of car manufacturing by the coalition when they were in government. I would have thought, friends, that after that hugely disruptive moment in time—blue-collar workers with their jobs upended, and all these other businesses reliant on the sector having their lives changed fundamentally by this callous disregard for Australia manufacturing by the coalition—that the coalition would have learnt. But they didn't. What we just had wasn't just justification; this was an excuse for the continued betrayal of Australian manufacturing by the shadow minister. It continues a legacy where they wave, with a white flag, Australian manufacturing offshore. They have not learnt a thing, friends, and they have stood in the way.

What we had was a shadow minister speaking on behalf of a coalition which refused to engage. They just waved off and opposed straightaway a bill that would have backed Australian manufacturing. Their contribution has been scrawled on the rocks that have been thrown against this bill and the continuum of Australian politics that exists today. This side, Labor, builds; they wreck. Any time there's a nation-building moment, those opposite see it as their sole purpose to tear it down. We believe in building things up and they tear things down.

The Prime Minister has championed the National Reconstruction Fund. This bill represents the will of the Prime Minister and those in our party who recognise a future made in Australia. We're determined to make sure that growth capital is available for all those people in the outer suburbs—the firms in the outer suburbs and the regions—who say that it's so hard to get backing and the capital that backs them to grow. So many of us on this side know that, and some on that side too. We want to make sure that it's available: us backing know-how, us backing ideas, us backing manufacturing, us backing business and us backing jobs. It's us backing us getting back up off the mat, where we are the lowest in manufacturing self-sufficiency in the OECD. We believe that we need this $15 billion financing vehicle as part of that broader push by us to rebuild our industrial capabilities so that we can be a country that makes things. Modern, large economies need capabilities in manufacturing to grow.

We need those jobs, not just for now but for our kids and for their kids in the longer term. That's what this is about: securing our future prosperity and driving growth. It's about leveraging our natural and competitive strengths and providing finance in the priority areas that the Prime Minister has outlined: investments in projects to support, diversify and transform industry.

I've already highlighted that the coalition stepped back. When they stepped back the crossbench stepped up and they engaged. As the Prime Minister rightly pointed out, we didn't agree on everything but we did agree on areas where we could work together. We wanted this to be a moment where the parliament did what the public expects: that we work together on the big problems facing the country and we come up with solutions and we did. From the committees that reviewed the bill, to industry stakeholders who prepared submissions and those here and in the other place who worked closely with the government on the bill to make it better we have produced a very strong bill indeed.

In response to that feedback and our discussions with state governments, industry, unions, the crossbench and the Greens amendments have been made to this bill. The amendments include amendments to clause 17 of the bill to make it clear that the board's got to have regard to important things like creating secure jobs, creating a skilled and adaptable workforce, transforming Australian industry, helping meet Australia's greenhouse gas emission reduction targets. Amendments to clause 75 require the corporation to develop policies on environmental labour, social and governance matters and how investments impact on our First Nations people. These sorts of broad policies represent modern best practice and we thank the stakeholders who raised these issues. We made amendments to clause 21, proposed by Senator Pocock, amending the term of board members from five to four years and a change to clause 91 seeing the first review of the act taking place by 31 December 2026. We've also agreed to amendments from Senator Tyrrell, on behalf of the Jacqui Lambie Network, to increase the size of the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation board and ensure a balance of expertise and skills across the skills mix—again, best practice corporate governance. Finally, we did a bit of housekeeping in response to comments by the scrutiny committee, amending clause 90 to clarify CEO delegation powers.

Again, the Albanese government wants to ensure that the National Reconstruction Fund is a nation building piece of legislation bringing the parliament together—very important. We need to address supply chains to ensure we have the products this country needs when we need them most and to help reduce inflation. We need to create more secure, well-paid jobs in the key industries that build our national strengths. We need to build capability, resilience and productivity in Australian manufacturing. We are delivering on our commitment today to the Australian people that we would set up the National Reconstruction Fund. It is an unashamedly modern approach to industry policy, leveraging our natural and competitive strengths and supporting the development of strategically important industries.

I want to thank colleagues for their contribution to the debate. The engagement of the Greens and the crossbench throughout the whole legislative process is much appreciated. We know this is a moment in time where we can make a real difference for business, for jobs and for the nation longer term. It is a nation building endeavour, a major reform to back in Australian manufacturers which prioritises Australian industry through the National Reconstruction Fund, an unprecedented $15 billion investment in manufacturing capability.

To the member for Spence and to all the other members here who represent manufacturing in all their electorates across the country, we are signalling to all those firms and all those workers that we have got your back. We will make sure that we back Australian ideas, that we back Australian firms and that we don't have firms leaving our shores because they feel like they don't have the support and the backing. Government, business, unions, the broader community working together to build a stronger economy, more jobs and prosperity, not just for our kids but for the kids that follow. This is a great moment in time. I thank everyone for their support on this bill. I commend it to the House.

Adam Bandt (Melbourne, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I urge the House to support these Senate amendments secured by the Greens, because it will stop public money going to coal, gas or logging our native forests. The Greens support manufacturing. The Greens support public investment in manufacturing. In fact, I wish the government had actually gone a bit further, because what we need to see in this country is more publicly owned manufacturing. Imagine how much better a position we would have been in to deal with the pandemic if we had a publicly owned vaccine manufacturer here in this country.

I hope that, as part of this new board's mandate, they look at the options that are available to them and ensure that, when the Australian public invests in manufacturing, which we support, the Australian public also gets a decent return from that, including, where appropriate, the Australian public having a seat at the table on the decisions that get made. Some of the biggest advances in manufacturing in this country have come when there's publicly owned and invested control over manufacturing and when it's done for the public good rather than for private profit. During the course of the pandemic we have seen how absolutely critical that is. The significant investment in manufacturing that this bill will deliver, especially with the Greens amendment, is something we support, which is why we support the bill and also urge the House to accept these amendments.

We know from bitter experience in the past that we need to write legislation not just for this government and its intentions but for future governments as well—future governments who may have a different view. We know that when we established the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, with the Greens, Labor and Independents working together to establish that success story, we had to put guardrails in it to ensure that money could not be spent from that fund on dirty energy. You would have thought, with the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, the name being in the title, that might have been clear enough. But we know we needed those guardrails in that and also in the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, because what we saw in the last term of the coalition government was them trying to use public funds that were meant for clean energy for gas and even coal, to try and redefine gas and coal as clean energy. That is why it is so critical that, if this authority and entity is going to stand the test of time and be there to support manufacturing and not be used as a slush fund by a future minister to bankroll coal and gas projects—like the previous government sought to do through the Clean Energy Finance Corporation and the Renewable Energy Agency—we need to put the protections in law.

I want to thank the minister and his office for their engagement on this to ensure that we futureproof this piece of important legislation to ensure that public money does not go to coal, to gas or to logging our native forests. In a time of climate crisis, public money should be going to renewables, public money should be going to public schools and public money should be going to public hospitals, but it should not be going to coal or gas or logging our native forest. What you will find through these amendments is that we've stopped public funding, through this entity, going to coal or gas or logging native forests. We've seen the Greens secure changes with respect to other public funds. We're going to work through all of these funds one by one to ensure that, in a time of climate crisis, public money is not going to make the climate crisis worse. I commend the amendments to the House.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the amendments be agreed to.