Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the minister representing the Minister for Environment and Energy, Senator Birmingham. A Galaxy poll was published today in The Adelaide Advertiser showing that a whopping 73 per cent of South Australians have not fallen for the government's lies. They understand that the recent blackout that hit our state happened when the storm-force winds destroyed transmission towers, not because of renewable energy. Will you give up on the scare campaign, Minister, or does the Turnbull government plan to blame all storm damage done across the country on wind farms from now on?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Hanson-Young for the question and the opportunity to make very clear to the Senate that this government will make no apologies for wanting to see energy reliability and energy affordability as being priorities right across Australia, especially in a state like South Australia—our home state, Senator Hanson-Young—which has amongst the highest economic challenges and highest unemployment in the nation and therefore should be doing everything possible to be making itself the most attractive location in Australia for investment and job creation in the future.

To look at the facts in relation to what the AEMO preliminary report indicated, it said that the severe weather damaged three transmission lines. It went on to indicate that following these transmission faults and a drop in voltage at the wind farms' connection points, 315 megawatts of wind generation disconnected and the Heywood interconnector increased its flows to meet the demand. Then the Heywood interconnector overloaded. I note that that overloading took place after those other events which, yes, included an extreme weather event but also included the reality of the drop in voltage in relation to wind farms.

What we can see though, not just in relation to this one incident but in relation to repeated incidents in South Australia, is that SA does face the highest priced and least reliable energy in the country. This is not a good situation for a state such as South Australia, seeking to attract more investment in the future and increase jobs growth. That is why we welcome the fact that the Chief Scientist, Dr Finkel, will work with all state and territory energy ministers to give a comprehensive assessment of how we can have a far more rational and sensible approach to energy policies in the future than has been the case with the ad hoc approach of state and territory targets today. (Time expired)

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Hanson-Young, a supplementary question.

Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yesterday there were storms in Victoria. The airport was shut down, flights were delayed and 50,000 Victorian homes are still without power today. Does the minister blame these issues on wind farms?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am pleased to see that there is such a highly-thought-through process of questioning there from the Australian Greens, that this is the best we possibly have.

Government Senators:

Government senators interjecting—

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As indeed some of the interjections coming from behind me pointed out, if you want to draw the analogy the first point you would make is that the entire state of Victoria did not face a blackout yesterday. The second point you would make is that in Victoria, of course, this does not come on top of what occurred in South Australia previously, which are the types of price spikes, brownouts and other issues the state has faced over a prolonged period of time. And it does not come in the face of the reality that South Australia has the highest priced, least affordable energy in the country. That, of course, runs in tandem with having an energy market that is dependent upon the highest level of wind energy in the country and the lack of frequency and stability that AEMO have indicated that provides into the energy market in South Australia.

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Hanson-Young, a final supplementary question.

Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Given that the public are not buying the Turnbull government's lies, when will the government give up attacking wind farms and renewable energy and instead recognise that we need to increase support for a renewable energy industry because extreme weather events will only become more frequent and more common due to global warming? Where are you, Senator Birmingham, and where the hell is the Prime Minister?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Policy by polling over there from the Australian Greens. Their whole position is based on the fact of what a Galaxy poll in The Adelaide Advertiser says today, whereas on this side and in this government we stand for creating the type of environment that can generate investment, generate jobs and generate security in energy markets, and can drive down prices wherever possible—but, yes, can do so in an environment that also meets our emissions target responsibilities globally.

We recognise that there are three factors to assess: reliability, prices and emissions. Unfortunately, the Australian Greens do not care about reliability or prices; they are only focused on the emissions part of the equation. To get the market settings right we need to address all three. Dr Finkel is absolutely the right person tasked with the right job to come up with a far more thoughtful analysis of how to give reliability, price stability and effective emissions reductions to energy markets than anything the Australian Greens could possibly offer.