Alan Eggleston (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

My pronunciation is being corrected from across the floor—it has apologised to the Indigenous people of Australia and it has set up literally hundreds of reviews, but there has been very little significant new policy announced. I must say the people of Australia are justified in wondering just what this government has been doing with its time and whether it really does have any new ideas. The May budget reflected the approach of poorly thought through, ideological based, symbolic gestures. And now to the list of such a poorly thought through measures we must add this condensate tax, which will disadvantage ordinary families in WA by increasing the cost of domestic electricity in our state.

In conclusion, in the interests of preserving Australia’s hard-earned reputation as a reliable nation of low sovereign risk where large capital investments in resource projects can be made with confidence and, most importantly, ensuring that families in WA are not burdened with higher electricity bills and increased prices for consumer goods, I call upon the Senate to reject this legislation.