Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader for Science) Share this | Hansard source

Labor does not support this motion because the amount of Australian steel used in public projects can be raised by more effective means than that of setting mandatory targets. Labor has already announced a six-point plan to secure the future of strategically significant metals manufacturing industries, including maintaining Australian standards for steel in all federally funded projects; seeking to maximise the use of local steel in federally funded projects; ensuring Australia's antidumping regulator has sufficient powers; working with the commission to strengthen the system, particularly on countervailing measures; appointing a steel industry advocate; halving the threshold for projects requiring to have Australian Industry Participation Plans; and doubling the funding for the Australian Industry Participation Authority. We are confident that our plan offers a more effective means of maximising the amount of Australian steel used in publicly funded projects.