Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Climate Action, Environment and Heritage) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you very much Madam Deputy Speaker. I would like to raise three issues in relation to grievances within my electorate. Firstly and most significantly in terms of the sad news today of the loss of 200 jobs from the Western Port steel works run by BlueScope at Hastings in my electorate. Secondly in relation to a better deal for autism families and thirdly a matter on behalf of petitioners within my electorate.

I turn firstly to the issue of BlueScope Steel and the loss of 200 direct employee jobs and approximately 60 contractors jobs from the Long Island steel plant, sometimes known as the Western Port steel plant at Hastings in my electorate of Flinders. This is a desperately sad outcome for workers, for their families and for the town and community of Hastings and the surrounding areas. Hastings is a town of approximately 8,500 people. To lose 260 jobs from within Hastings and the broader area is a big blow to the working population. I think every member of this house takes their job seriously and would feel the weight of that loss. It is significant and it is real.

On the macroeconomic matters let me say that we have endeavoured to be utterly responsible with accepting that this has been primarily caused by the combination of the high Australian dollar, the high cost of inputs in terms of raw materials for steel, the low price being given in terms of sale and demand and the extremely poor export markets for a variety of reasons not the least of which is the massive production of North Asian steel across China, Japan and Korea. This is a reality and we are not claiming that this set of job losses was caused by the carbon tax because it predates them, but having spoken with company executives let me be absolutely clear that they said it was their fiduciary duty to consider the fact that the formal package which they face at the moment is a four-year package but that their net present value estimates for the future in calculating how they look at long term investments are made over 40 years. They cannot bank on a change of government; they are not in a position to assume a change of government so therefore they have to assume a carbon tax in precisely the form that the government has set out with a four-year assistance package but a 40-year tax, given that it is planned out to 2050. Those are real considerations but we have been responsible in saying that this outcome today is in its immediate form the consequence of deep and difficult global conditions for Australian manufacturing.

Against that background the worst thing that could possibly happen, given the fragility of Australian manufacturing as seen by OneSteel last week and as seen by Blue Scope this week, the worst thing that could happen is to add an additional carbon tax on top of it. For those who rightly care about the environment, this will do nothing for the environment because it will simply shift the weight of production to less regulated environments in China, India and Indonesia whether it is steel or injection moulding for plastic or cement or other such products. That is the reality. We will simply shift the burden of production and the emissions generation to other environments with the carbon tax in this form at this time. It is the single worst thing we could do.

In terms of the individual package for the workers, I appreciate the outline of that which has been done by the Prime Minister. We called for action immediately and I understand of course that the Prime Minister's office may well have had a heads up. I raised four matters in dealing with the Prime Minister's office and associated departments this afternoon. Firstly, having spoken with workers who have been retrenched prior to today, the package should extend to workers who were released in the last month because today was the culmination of a process not the commencement of a process. Secondly, consideration has to be given to contractors and if there is a relevant test such as 50 per cent of their income coming from the one supplier being BlueScope, then those contractors for the purposes of the package should be allowed to participate. Thirdly, it is absolutely unacceptable that there is not a comparable package to that given to the Illawarra to assist the Mornington Peninsula with the generation of new jobs. There is a $30 million package, including a $20 million Commonwealth fund. We would expect at least a quarter of that in the case of Hastings and an agreement with the Victorian government. Fourthly, given that the Prime Minister has said that the carbon tax was not responsible, none of this package should therefore be linked to the passage of the carbon tax. To hold support for workers hostage to the carbon tax would be a disgrace. I trust this will not happen, but if it does we will hold this government to account and we will hound, harry and work until such time as the linkage is severed. If the Prime Minister says this loss of jobs is not related to the carbon tax, then compensation cannot, and must not, be tied to passage of the carbon tax, which itself will bring a second wave of effects as surely as night follows day.

I turn to a second topic and that is the status of parents within my electorate and elsewhere in Australia who have struggled with the great challenge of autism. I recently completed a 500 kilometre walk for autism, and the funds raised have been shared between the Abacus Learning Centre and Autism Victoria. I did it from the complete surprise at the number of parents who have outlined the condition of autism and the difficulty in acquiring services to me over the last couple of years. This is particularly so in the case of early intervention as well as support for adults with autism once they leave school. This is a great challenge. Autism is, of course, a tremendous spectrum. At one end are those who are highly functional but who suffer from sensory overload, which may manifest itself in the form of extreme shyness or sensitivity to light, noise and smell or perhaps aversion to water with all the social consequences that flow from that. As part of that process we raised about $31,000 for Autism Victoria and the Abacus Learning Centre in Hastings. Abacus was set up by parents such as Michael and Lauren Moore and many others to help young children try to get the building blocks necessary to be able to manage their autism and to learn as well as they can. Many of these children have gone on to sensational outcomes. The dux of Westernport Secondary College two years ago was a boy with autism, but he was supported by his friends and his fellow students. They tolerated the differences and he in turn was able to flourish despite the challenges. On the walk we visited over 52 schools; we had constituents join as all the way. I was delighted that one mother, Natalie, joined for 180 kilometres and another, Marilyn, joined for 200 kilometres. The walk for them became a totemic statement about their own sons, Lewis and Joel, each of whom has autism. We worked with students all around the electorate of Flinders. I want to thank all my staff who were involved—Tina and Melina, Lyn and Denise, Wendy and my great friend Sue de Bono. The task as we go forward is to push for a national autism summit with three specific goals: firstly, early intervention; secondly, respite; thirdly, individual support. In the brief time remaining I wish to table a petition on behalf of the Mornington Peninsula human rights group, whose views I respect very much.

See this speech in context