Barry O'Sullivan (Queensland, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the very sophisticated Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, Senator Canavan. Can the minister provide an update on major resource projects in northern Australia, particularly in my home state of Queensland, where unemployment stands at six per cent and in Townsville is approaching nine per cent?

Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the senator for his question. He is right to point out some the difficult economic circumstances that areas of regional Queensland are facing and have faced over the past couple of years. Many regional towns in Queensland have had unemployment rates higher than those rates, too, of above 10 per cent, given the downturn in the mining sector and, a couple of years ago, a very severe drought as well. But there is hope on the horizon for regional Queensland. We have had good rains for the agricultural sector, and, in the last few months, a number of coalmines have reopened or announced their reopening in Queensland, including at Collinsville and Baralaba, and expansions of coalmines at Peak Downs and Saraji that will create hundreds of jobs.

Just before Christmas, there was a fantastic early Christmas present for North Queensland, when Adani announced their plans to put even more jobs in regional Queensland. In particular, Adani announced that their project will have its headquarters in Townsville—in a regional city, not a capital city. They are creating hundreds of jobs, not just in the mining sector but also secretarial, administrative, accounting and legal jobs, in a major regional centre in our country. That is a massive positive for Australia to have that development going in there.

At the same time, they announced that Mackay and Bowen will be the regional headquarters for their rail and port operations—an important fillip for the town of Bowen; it has done it very tough—and that other towns will be service centres as well, including some smaller towns like Clermont, Moranbah, Collinsville, Charters Towers, Emerald and Rockhampton. This is the biggest news for North Queensland for decades, perhaps the biggest news, as I said, since the Beatles were here in the sixties, because it was back then that the Thiess brothers got together with Mitsui and built a mine in the Bowen Basin—

Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You weren't even born!

George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I was there! Arthur and I were there!

Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

and that created enormous wealth through North Queensland. This new mine will open up the first coal basin for 40 years—

An opposition senator: It was before you were born!

and create even more jobs throughout Queensland— (Time expired)

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

Senator O'Sullivan, a supplementary question.

Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Families and Payments) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You would remember it, Barry!

Barry O'Sullivan (Queensland, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sadly, I do! Can the minister outline what employment opportunities will be provided by the Adani Carmichael mine project?

Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I was saying in answer to the first question, this is not just a mining project. This is about opening up by an entire new coal basin, the first coal basin to be opened in Australia for more than 40 years. That will create massive amounts of economic opportunity for other mines to open up in those areas and for the service industries that service mines—be they legal, accounting or others—to be located in regional Queensland near those centres of wealth. That will create jobs right across our economy, which is very important if we want to develop our nation.

Later this year, Adani will announce where the hub for their fly-in fly-out operations will be, and Rockhampton and Townsville are competing for that. Mackay is still interested, I know, too. And that will mean even more families will move to regional Queensland as well, and that is a great thing for our country because that will take pressure off Sydney and Melbourne and other areas of our country where perhaps we have too much congestion. We have other areas in our country to develop. We have enormous expanses of land in North Queensland. We would love to have more Australians, but we need to have jobs to attract the Australians there. This project will deliver them in their thousands.

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

Senator O'Sullivan, a final supplementary question.

Barry O'Sullivan (Queensland, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I know the minister and the Greens know the answer to this next question. Can the minister advise what obstacles stand in the way of the Adani project?

Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like to say up-front that I recognise the support that the Queensland Labor government has provided to this project. They are working very closely with the federal government to ensure that a major investment in our nation can happen, because it is important for our country. It is important we work together as federal and state governments—and indeed, I recognise the great work that the local governments have done as well—so we are all working together to see this happen.

But there are still obstacles in the way. There are still a number of court cases outstanding, where a number of groups are taking actions, but not to try and protect the environment. They are transparently trying to hold up the creation of jobs in our country, not because they feel there is something wrong with the approval processes but because they think that by delaying the project through the court system they can stop the project altogether. I do not believe our judicial system should be held to ransom by these groups who want to oppose those jobs and stop this development in this country. We need to see this project go ahead. We are working with other political parties and other governments— (Time expired)