Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern Australia) Share this | Hansard source

The first greenhouse gas office in the world, Senator Barnett. We did a lot of things to reduce emissions, and so we should have. I agree with the minister on that: we should be reducing our carbon emissions—but not legislating in this way, and putting at risk 1,200 jobs in my home town, for a scheme that may or may not achieve agreement. What would it matter if we waited until parliament resumed and say: ‘Okay, we’ve seen what everyone is doing in Copenhagen; we’re convinced everybody is going to do something, or at least everybody who counts to Australia; and if everyone who has an impact on the Great Barrier Reef is doing something, the people whose emissions do affect the Great Barrier Reef, then so should we’. I am very firm on that.

I have distracted myself, for which I apologise to the chamber, but I was coming back to the movers of the motion. As I understand their amendment, this will mean a massive price rise across the board for Australian industries, putting jobs at risk, as I have just said. I ask the movers what modelling has been undertaken to look at the cost increases that might result from this amendment being carried. If there are no cost increases, I would like the mover to explain how that could possibly be.