Cassandra Fernando (Holt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Climate Change and Energy. How will the Albanese Labor government's reliable renewables plan deliver the clean, cheap and resilient energy system that Australians deserve? What policies has the government rejected and why?

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank my honourable friend for the question. I quote:

… renewable energy connected with transmission and distribution, firmed with storage, and backed up by gas-powered generation is the lowest-cost way to supply electricity to homes and businesses as Australia transitions to a net zero economy.

That's a direct quote from the Integrated Systems Plan, released today by AEMO, our market regulator, and which I'll table. It's a detailed, concrete, well-considered plan which has been informed by more than 2,000 consultations and a thousand scenarios. It found that renewables, backed by transmission and storage, are the lowest-cost pathway for the Australian energy system.

It goes on to say:

That transformation is essential for the Australian economy to enjoy affordable and reliable energy in the future, as well as achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

And the Australian Industry Group has said:

The 2024 Integrated System Plan is the best roadmap we have to meet our energy needs, …

The Ai Group is right. This is what good policy looks like—well-considered policy based on facts, based on evidence, based on detail and based on research.

And the member asked me about what policies we reject. It's not really a fair fight when you compare the detailed documentation and the consultation which goes into the government's energy policy with the one-page thought bubble we see from those opposite. No costings, no details, no models—no details whatsoever. And we know that the opposition knows the cost. The Leader of the National Party let the cat out of the bag. He said, 'We know what they are, we're just not ready to tell you yet.' It's a surprise! It's a surprise, according to those opposite!

Michael Sukkar (Deakin, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Social Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You own this!

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We know nuclear power is very expensive, but we also know this: as is the usual case, there are some members opposite who say the quiet bit out loud. They tend to be from the National Party and from Queensland, and I give credit to the honesty of the Queensland National Party. It's not just that nuclear is expensive to build but it's also that to make it work it needs to force out the cheapest form of energy: renewables. The member for Hinkler admitted this. He said:

Clearly, if you have energy generation that works 100 per cent of the time, you would always use that before intermittent wind and solar, …

And Senator Canavan said:

What we really need is a greater priority given to electricity that can be provided all the time.

When they release their modelling, will they release how much they'll curtail rooftop solar? How much they'll be telling Australians not to use their rooftop solar? How much they'll be saying that they don't want renewables? The Leader of the National Party, again, said that he's going to cap large-scale renewables.

That's the real intent of this anti-renewable policy. They want to shut down renewable energy investment in this country because of their ideological prejudice against it, because they don't like cheap, renewable energy and because they don't have a real plan for Australia. What they are is a real risk for Australia. (Time expired)