Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

Labor supports this motion. As last year's inquiry by the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics into the refining industry found, having:

… domestic refining capacity is a worthwhile complement to imports as part of having reliable, mature and diverse supply chains for liquid fuels.

The energy sector is a major employer, providing work directly and indirectly for over 100,000 Australians. We know that the growth in employment in the domestic oil-refining sector is declining. That is concerning. The people employed in the sector are highly skilled, productive and loyal. When closures occur we should always do what we can to assist workers to find other work. This should always be a priority for both industry and government. This industry should not be abandoned. The domestic refining industry continues to play an important role in complementing our imports.