Sean Edwards (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, Senator Wong. I refer the minister to reports that Pete's Fish Farm, a rainbow trout producer in Kalangadoo in the south-east of her home state of South Australia, will close within the next 12 months as a result of increases in their electricity costs. Their electricity rate has increased from 27.7c to 36.39c a kilowatt hour following the introduction of the carbon tax, making their business unviable. What is the government's message to businesses like Pete's Fish Farm, which, as a result of the carbon tax, cannot afford the increases in their power prices and as a consequence will close their business?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I do not have personal knowledge of Pete's Fish Farm at Kalangadoo.

Senator Ian Macdonald interjecting—

Senator Bernardi interjecting—

There is an echo at the end of the chamber.

Honourable senators interjecting—

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! When there is silence we will proceed. Senator Wong.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I do not have personal knowledge of the fish farm at Kalangadoo to which the senator refers, but I suspect my response on this issue would be the same as it has been on every other—

Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern and Remote Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You couldn't care less.

Senator Ryan interjecting—

David Feeney (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They could answer their own questions.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, we could just allow Senator Macdonald to answer, I suppose. It could be an interesting conversation between him and Senator Edwards.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Wong, ignore the interjections.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I suspect my answer on this would be the same as on other issues. The first point is on materiality. You have to be careful in suggesting that the entirety of an electricity price increase is as a result of the carbon price because self-evidently and demonstrably that is untrue. I have gone through that. Even Mr Turnbull and the opposition spokesperson have also recognised this, that the majority of price increases that people have experienced in the last few years have been as a result of network costs, not as a result of the carbon price.

The second point is that the government did assume that there would be costs passed through, that there would be an impact on the consumer price index of about 0.7 per cent. In fact, for food it was less. That has been factored into the Household Assistance Package. In response to Senator Birmingham, I went through the hundreds of thousands of South Australians who will get assistance under the government's clean energy future package, which is obviously relevant to the question the senator asks. If the senator does care about jobs, I would hope he recognises that under this government we have seen 810,000 jobs created. (Time expired)

Sean Edwards (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question of the minister. On the point of materiality of entirety, as the minister coins it, I refer the minister to the fact that the owner of Pete's Fish Farm described the carbon tax as 'the final nail in the coffin, with no hope of passing on the additional cost to consumers'. Given that the Prime Minister said yesterday that small businesses should just pass on the costs of carbon tax to consumers, does this confirm that Labor does not understand small business or that it just does not care?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The government does understand the circumstances of many of Australia's small businesses, which is why we wanted to provide a tax cut to them, which was opposed by those opposite. That is why we put in place an instant asset write-off and an increased tax break for small business, which were opposed by those opposite. If the senator does not know, he has been committed by his shadow finance minister to revoke that, to impose a tax hike on small business. The government understands the needs of small business and big business, which is why we have a loss carry-back policy funded in the last budget, the vast majority of which will be to the benefit of small businesses which, by a great margin, will be the majority recipients, in Treasury's assessment, of that tax assistance and that tax break.

All of these things were opposed by those opposite, so if the senator wants to come in here and lecture us about small business I suggest he goes to them and explain why he thinks they should pay more tax.

Sean Edwards (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a final supplementary question. Given the carbon tax will make margins for small businesses even lower, resulting in many business owners walking away from the businesses they run and the people they employ, how many more victims will the carbon tax have to claim before the government axes this cruel tax?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I suggest that with the words of that question the senator has demonstrated the confected outrage from a bloke who is part of a party that have said: 'We're not going to pass on a company tax cut with a head start for small business. Oh, no! We don't want that. We don't want a tax break through an instant asset write-off for small business. Oh, no! We don't want that. We don't want loss carry-back for small business. Oh, no! We don't want that!' To come in here and give us a lecture about why small business is doing it tough when they have stood in the way of the policies of this government to give tax breaks to small business, when they are going to go to the next election and say to all small businesses: 'Guess what? We're going to give you a tax hike,' I think how genuine a person is or is not is demonstrated by the policy position they are holding.