Andrew Hastie (Canning, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As Australians, we are blessed with an abundance of resources. We are world leaders in coal, gas, uranium, iron ore, critical minerals and rare earths. These commodities are the source of our prosperity and that of our regional neighbours. In fact, our trade has helped many of our partner economies grow and develop. In many ways we are the envy of the world, and many of the good things we enjoy come about through traditional energy sources. I'm grateful for the gas in my stove, the diesel in my car and the power that keeps my family home running. That's why I'm baffled by Labor's mission to take us backwards—to lower our productivity, reduce our standard of living and make us less competitive as a country.

Labor have coal and gas in their crosshairs as they march towards their target of 82 per cent renewables by 2030. They want coal and gas gone, even though Australia only produces just over one per cent of the world's carbon emissions, as reported by the CSIRO last month. Labor has two new radical green policies. First is their fuel efficiency standard on new four-wheel drives and utes. Many in my region will be hit by this tax—tradies and farmers, the mining sector, seniors who tow their caravan in winter, and regional families who enjoy off-roading, boating and camping. I've spent time with my local car dealers, and this policy is bad news for Aussies who use these vehicles for work and recreation.

The other thing Labor wants to do is build massive ugly wind farms up and down our beautiful coast. They've just proposed one in my patch, from Mandurah to Bunbury. That's right—not in Cottesloe Beach, in Perth's upmarket suburbs, but down in regional Western Australia. Mostly made in China and produced with lots of emissions, these wind turbines will harm our fish, our birds and our whales. They'll ruin our boating and sailing, and they're just ugly. Most importantly, wind farms cost a massive amount of money and deliver unreliable and unaffordable power, compared to our traditional sources. What we need is more gas-fired power in our energy grid.

If we want to keep our standard of living, we must have affordable and reliable power. Renewables can't drive a First World economy, with advanced manufacturing, and regular Aussies shouldn't be forced to subsidise the renewables sector with such bad returns on investment, along with the huge transition and maintenance costs that wind and solar farms impose. It's time we said no to the crony capitalists who clip the power bills of Australian families to pay for their green agenda while at the same time de-industrialising our great country. It's time to reconnect with our strengths. It's time to be grateful for them and not be ashamed.