Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Hansard source

The resources industry is one of the most important industries for regional communities right across Australian states, including Senator Canavan's great home state of Queensland. Whether it's Karratha, Mackay, Mount Isa, across Queensland or right across the country, the resources sector underpins good jobs, reliable jobs, high-paying jobs for families, particularly those living in regional areas, and it creates economies and communities that provide further job opportunities right across regional Australia.

It is of course also, I am pleased to say as trade minister, a leading export sector in terms of the contribution it makes generating income wealth for our nation. As I was saying before, it is not just the extraction of resources but increasingly areas of processing and the use of Australian skills, know-how and capabilities that we see now assisting projects around the world and again generating more high-paying job opportunities for Australians, which will be ever more important in our economic recovery. (Time expired)