House debates

Wednesday, 16 February 2022

Questions without Notice

Agriculture

2:22 pm

Photo of Barnaby JoyceBarnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for her question and note how in the seat of Mallee ,with legumes, canola, wheat and so many citrus products, the people of her area have done their part in not only feeding Australia but assisting in the food task of the world.

A key component of that is urea, which is a vital fertiliser. Eighty per cent of the urea Australia uses comes from China. But this government has put $255 million on the table for the construction of a urea plant at Karratha. This will provide about 96 per cent of Australia's urea needs. This is an absolute statement on the preparedness of this side of the House to keep the sovereignty of our agricultural industry in place.

The member for Mallee also talks of alternative policies and threats. Of course, what we have seen is that an alternative government is a Greens and Labor alliance. They mock it, but actually, in this very city, we have a Greens and Labor alliance. We have the fact that the Chief Minister, Andrew Barr, is in the Labor Party, and yet the Attorney-General, Shane Rattenbury, is in the Greens. We have Emma Davidson, an assistant minister, in the Greens. Another assistant minister, Tara Cheyne, is in the Labor Party. The environment minister, Rebecca Vassarotti, is in the Greens, but the transport minister, Chris Steel, is in the Labor Party. So let's part company with this myth that there is not a Greens and Labor alliance.

We have Senator Katy Gallagher in the other place, who has never organised a business, but she has been a leader and organised a Greens and Labor alliance. It is present not only in this city; it is present in this building—a Greens and Labor alliance.

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