Craig Kelly (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Firstly, I'd like to congratulate the member for Berowra on moving this motion. I note his very strong ties to and involvement with the Indian community in his electorate, and I congratulate him on that.

The Indian economic miracle that we have witnessed over the last decade has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. The world is so much better when a democratic India is strong. If we look at what is behind that strength, we have to look at the way that they have increased energy and electricity generation to their people. Between 2006 and July 2018, India has added 156,969 megawatts of coal-fired electricity generation capacity. To put that in some context, that is the equivalent of 100 Hazelwood power stations. So, between 2006 and July last year, India has added 100 equivalent coal-fired power stations. On top of that, it has an additional 39,368 megawatts of coal-fired capacity currently under construction. Again to put that in some context, Australia's total coal-fired generation capacity is around 23,000 megawatts.

So what India has under construction today, on top of the equivalent of 100 Hazelwoods that it has built over the last decade, is almost 75 per cent more than Australia's total coal-fired generation. And it doesn't stop there. Additional to that, it has a further 15,750 megawatts of coal-fired power announced, another 24,466 pre-permitted and another 23,115 permitted. If you add all those up, you can see the way that India has required more coal.

So it comes as no surprise that it was announced in The Times of India only last week that the Modi government has opened 52 new coalmines since it came to power in May 2014. We have had one Indian company here trying to open one coalmine for over a decade, held up in red tape. In the meantime, over in India they have opened 52 new coalmines. These 52 new coalmines represent an 86 per cent growth over the number of mines added in the previous five-year period, between 2009 and 2014. These new mines have added 164 million tonnes to India's annual coal production capacity, marking a 113 per cent increase over the capacity added in the previous five-year period.

You would think that, with these 52 new coalmines that India has added, it may not need to invest in new coal production facilities here in Australia. But the thing is that the coalmines that India is adding are mainly lignite and brown coal, which burn much more dirtily, with greater emissions, than does the black coal that would be available from the Adani Carmichael mine in Queensland. So the activists who are stopping that mine going ahead in Queensland are not going to stop India progressing. They're not going to stop India lifting millions of people out of poverty. All they are doing is going to result in more dirty brown coal being burnt with higher emissions than the black coal from Australian mines.

That also brings me to an article we saw in the paper only today saying that the CFMEU will demand of Labor candidates in Queensland to pledge support for the coalmining industry, including Adani's Carmichael mine. But here's the thing: it says 'Labor candidates in Queensland'. What about the Labor candidates around the rest of the nation? The concern that every Queenslander should have is that Labor will tell one thing to the state of Queensland, and they will say another thing in the states of Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia and Tasmania. Double-faced, I think that's called—or speaking with a forked tongue. If they're going to make this pledge, make it nationwide. (Time expired)

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