Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Brandis, the Minister representing the Prime Minister. Yesterday the Minister for Finance said in relation to the Chief Scientist's review into the future security of the national electricity market:

… the price of electricity has been going up in recent times. It is projected to continue to go up and up and up if we do nothing.

Is the Minister for Finance correct?

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

Yes, the Minister for Finance is correct. That is why the government is taking action.

The government is taking action, and that is why we discussed the matter at great length, as I explained to you in answer to Senator Farrell's question earlier on. Doing nothing is not an option. At least, surely, all of us in this chamber can agree to that one proposition? If we do nothing, electricity prices and energy prices generally will continue to rise. So, whichever party may be in government at any given time, they must take action and they must take action without further delay. This government has shown that it is up for that challenge. First of all, what we have done, along with the other COAG jurisdictions, was to commission Alan Finkel, the Chief Scientist, to produce a report. When the report was received by government it was immediately made public. That was last Friday. And we arranged for there to be a briefing on the Finkel report by the minister, Mr Frydenberg, yesterday. Following that briefing, we had a long and interesting discussion in our party room.

The government will move forward on this matter, because to do nothing is not an option. Therefore, delay is not an option. As I said in answer to your colleague, in the policy choices we will make we will be informed by those three objectives of keeping electricity prices affordable; ensuring reliability of supply, so we do not have writ large across the country the fiasco that the South Australian Labor government subjected us to when the entire state was blacked out; and we will keep our international emissions reduction commitments as well.

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

Senator Gallagher, a supplementary question.

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the Attorney for the answer. Given that the coalition party room met yesterday morning for two hours and for almost three hours yesterday evening, following this meeting can the minister now outline a government position on the Finkel review and, specifically, any concrete actions the government will be taking?

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

Well, Senator Gallagher, it was a long meeting and do you know why it was such a long meeting? Because there are so many of us—there are so many of us in the coalition party room—

Government Senators:

Government senators interjecting—

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

Order on my right!

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

Do you know what all of my colleagues have in common? Every last one of them is very, very intelligent and every last one of them had a very intelligent contribution to make. So we did have a long meeting; we are glad we had a long meeting. It was a meeting in which a variety of points of view were fleshed out and a variety of hard questions were put to Mr Frydenberg which he answered with his characteristic aplomb and which will inform the decisions the Turnbull government makes to ensure that we do not have, as I said a moment ago, the fiasco that a Labor government in South Australia inflicted on that state—of the state being blacked out because the policy choices were the wrong choices. We will keep prices affordable, we will keep supply secure and we will honour our international obligations.

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

Senator Gallagher, a final supplementary question.

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yesterday you, as the Attorney-General, boasted in relation to the Finkel review: 'We want to put a stop to this area of policy paralysis'. Isn't it clear that the Prime Minister is so weak and the government so divided that the policy paralysis will continue imposing yet more costs on Australian consumers?

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

I do not know why you ask these questions, Senator Gallagher, because they are so preposterous. Let us get this straight, through you, Mr President: Senator Gallagher, you chastise a government for having a discussion about an expert report. That is regarded by the Australian Labor Party as a gotcha moment, is it? The government is having a long and detailed and thorough discussion, engaging all the lively and intelligent minds of the coalition, to discuss an expert report, led by a minister, Mr Josh Frydenberg, who is better informed about this area of policy than virtually anyone else in this parliament with the possible exception of the Prime Minister. That is what we did. That is the way the coalition makes policy: we understand the issues, we seek expert advice, we have a thorough discussion, we decide what the right policy choices are and then, having informed ourselves and having had a thorough discussion, we deliver the right outcomes for the Australian people.