Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Minister for Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have a short answer to the couple of questions took on notice from Senator McGauran yesterday. Given the circumstances, I will read it out briefly—it is only a paragraph:

The Minister for Resources and Energy has not said that certain mines will close. Rather, he has said that no-one can rule out a mine or two closing. This statement applies under all circumstances, whether a carbon price applies or not. Just as some mines were closed during the global financial crisis, the government cannot guarantee that mines will not close in future. Individual mines can close for a range of reasons; however, the government is confident that Australia's coal sector will expand in coming years. The minister's statement was not based on any modelling and he was not referring to any mine in particular.