George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Hansard source

No, that is not the case. If you want to quote third-party commentary on the announcement the Prime Minister made yesterday, might I direct you to the overwhelming weight of the commentary, which has been to support, and indeed applaud, the government's decision. In the Fairfax press, the economics writer Peter Martin celebrates: 'Out of the ashes of failed attempts, finally a chance to put the climate wars behind us.' Similarly in the News Limited press, the distinguished commentator Paul Kelly made the observation in his opinion article this morning that the only people who will object to the policy that the Prime Minister announced yesterday are people on the extreme edges of the debate.

That is a very good position for a government to be in. As I said to you before, Senator Whish-Wilson, our objective, of which we are not ashamed, is to keep electricity prices as low as we can get them.