Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Pocock, this is not a debate about tax, and I haven't come prepared to answer questions about the PRRT, but I feel quite certain that this is something that could have been asked in estimates last week had you wished to—and you may well have done so; I wasn't there for that part of the hearings.

I will just get to the heart of your proposition, Senator. As I was saying to you in my earlier answer, under the safeguard mechanism, new gas fields must reduce and offset reservoir emissions to net zero from day one. That is world's best practice. And world's best practice does require CCS, and that's why we are taking the steps across a range of different pieces of legislation to ensure that the way we address CCS is sufficiently robust.

It appears from your contributions that you do not consider CCS part of a net zero future. I think that's the position that you're putting here, although I did hear you earlier in the debate acknowledge that there were some sectors for which you do think it's appropriate.

It's worth reiterating that the IPCC, the International Energy Agency, the International Renewable Energy Agency, the Climate Change Authority and CSIRO all recognise that a significant amount of CCUS will be required to meet the net zero challenges globally. If you accept that that's the case, that it is a feature of our pathway to net zero, then of course we should have a regulatory arrangement in place that enables that.

What is more surprising to me is the proposition that appears to be being put from the crossbench that you're going to vote against a bill that puts in place an environmental regulatory arrangement to ensure that the CCS projects that do proceed proceed inconsistent with the international arrangements to manage our shared ocean resource. I actually find that extraordinary.