Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Hansard source

I will speak briefly to the motion. I want to start by saying that I think in this debate it would be useful if we could try and separate the fact from the hyperbole, the fact from the exaggeration and the fact from what is simply a political attack.

There was some discussion in the chamber earlier today whereby senators on that side suggested that the government had shown no regret. I think it is unfortunate that those statements were made because the government’s regret has been communicated very clearly in public statements and also by the minister assisting me in his statement, which was made in the House yesterday and tabled here today. He has expressed in a personal context his deepest regret and sympathy to the families on behalf of the government as well as himself as minister. I did want to make that point because I think there is no-one in this chamber who regards the deaths of four young men as anything other than a terrible tragedy, and that view has been put by the minister publicly as well as privately, and the sympathies communicated to the families.

There are undoubtedly significant problems with this program. I would remind those opposite that this was a very large program. As Mr Combet has said, the amount of insulation rolled out in less than eight months was to 1.1 million Australian homes. That is an average of around 137,000 homes a month. In fact, each month the number of home insulation jobs was around double the previous annual average. So, in a month, under this program, the government funded around double the previous annual average undertaken. It is an extraordinarily large number, and there are environmental benefits as a result of that rollout. It is also important to remember that the large majority of insulation installations were completed in compliance with the program.

Leaving that aside, there are clearly issues. The government has not hidden from those. We have been upfront about them. Another misfact that was put in the chamber today by another senator is that the government did not act on any of the warnings. That is not true. If you look at the statements, including the ministerial statements made by Minister Garrett and other public statements which ministers have put on the public record, we have made clear the way in which the government responded to different warnings and new advice. The most recent new advice we have also acted on, and that was in relation to the advice regarding foil whereby the advice subsequent to Minister Garrett closing this program is that the foil will need to be removed or safety switches installed. The government have moved quickly to act on that advice and have indicated that we will do so and that we will fund it.

In relation to budget issues, as the Treasurer has said, we are also very upfront about the fact that we will need to fund these measures. Those amounts will be considered in the context of budget preparation. The government will make those clear as and when they become available. This is a difficult set of problems but it is a set of problems that the government is determined to fix. Minister Combet is to be commended for the way in which he has taken on board this program, the way in which he is moving as quickly as is possible to rectify the issues in the program. He is responsibly addressing each of the various policy issues which have arisen.

But that is not enough for the opposition. They continue to come in here and make a range of assertions, many of which are simply not true, about what is occurring in relation to this program and at times, if I may suggest, are almost gleeful about some of the issues. In question time today the question about carbon footprint was put. For an opposition led by a man who thinks climate change is absolute crap to be attacking aspects of this program on the basis of carbon footprint speaks of utter hypocrisy. It really demonstrates that the opposition, in large part, are not interested in the facts associated with this program, nor in how the government is remedying those problems—but they are interested in making a range of inaccurate and wild political accusations.

This is a government that is determined to remedy the issues in this program. We will continue to work to do so. We will not pretend to the Australian people that we can fix it overnight, because we know that that is not the case. What we will say, as Minister Combet has said, is that we will work assiduously to remedy the problems with the program and to deal with the issues which have arisen.

In relation to this program, I would also make the point that this is a very comprehensive ministerial statement outlining the way forward. Minister Combet has clearly indicated to the Australian people, through the parliament, a great deal of transparency and openness about the issues and how we propose to address them. I think he is doing a very good job in relation to this program. As I said, we know these things cannot be fixed overnight, but we are determined to address them and the government has laid out the ways in which it intends to do so.