Luke Howarth (Petrie, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Defence Industry) Share this | Hansard source

I was actually talking about the minister for manufacturing. The National Reconstruction Fund that this government has put forward, with the accompanying administrative corporation and independent board, is really poorly designed. Labor's manufacturing policy will drive up inflation and interest rates through this reckless off-budget spending, while ignoring the critical economic issues which have been amplified through this government's poor policy decisions and which have left homegrown Australian manufacturers calling out for this government to address.

These are issues like rising energy prices. We know the Prime Minister promised to reduce energy prices 97 times—almost 100; we'll round it up to 100—before the last election. And those have continued to go up, even after the legislation was passed the end of last year. They're still going up! A constituent of mine from Griffith sent me an energy bill today, and it has increased by 50 per cent. Labour market shortages are also a big issue for this government. And what are they doing during this time? The minister for employment is actually getting rid of mutual obligation and making it easier for those who are currently on JobSeeker not to have to look for work and not to have to do training. In fact, the minister opposite is, I believe, abolishing the ParentsNext program that the coalition government put in place. That's a remarkable program, which has done great things, and they're getting rid of it! They're not addressing energy prices and they're not addressing labour market shortages, and disrupted supply chains need to be addressed first. Any investments through this off-budget National Reconstruction Fund will be in vain, when it eventually gets going nearly two years on; if this government does not address these critical economic challenges, any proposed investment will be eaten up by increased input costs and inflation.

You would think that the Albanese government would try to tackle the rising costs in energy prices as they become a rising problem for our manufacturers. From fruit pickers in the agricultural industry, through medical manufacturing and to critical technologies, right across the board, manufacturers are being hit by massively increased costs in electricity and gas bills. The latest report by the Australian Energy Market Operator on the state of Australia's energy grid has a clear warning that the government's energy policies are failing our businesses. They're causing higher costs, and look at what the government is doing in renewables and by refusing to look at other options, like small modular nuclear emissions-free energy: they just rule that out completely, but then say, 'Let's do more off-budget spending through the Rewiring the Nation Fund and let's run high-voltage powerlines right around the country.' That's bad for the environment—it kills birds. It's probably through farmland in your area, member for Barker. And guess where all of this is made? It is all made overseas. If we are talking about manufacturing, every solar panel outside of Tindo, which is 97 per cent of the market, is made in China. All the wind farms are made overseas. None of it is recycled at the moment. I see state and federal governments saying it should be recycled. That's all good but when is that going to happen? Right now, it's all just put into landfill. They talk about manufacturing but it is costly. Imagine the amount of money that is going to be spent in offshore wind farms out in the ocean. With the Rewiring the Nation policy, some businesses, where energy costs are going up, can pass on these costs to the consumer and that will just contribute to more inflation.

Australians can see that their grocery bills and higher costs of living are going up under this government. In fact, today in a question time, the Treasurer went out of his way to point out to the opposition that there was one interest rate rise prior to the election—one—and nine since they came to office, yet I am sure all these newbies on the other side here on their social media put up 'Inflation is high at 5.1 and now it is 7.8 per cent,' or 'Interest rates are high. Mortgages have gone up $400.' Now they have gone up $2,000. I am sure the good people of Robertson and other seats over there, their mortgages have gone up by $2,000 and these guys think they are doing a good job. It is an absolute joke! But, of course, not all businesses can do that.

Businesses in defence industries, for example, deal with fixed-price contracts that run for years. The rising costs will have real, long-lasting damage to manufacturing industries over the coming years. Small and medium operators within defence industry tell me that once again that ministers opposite were all keen to see them before the election but, since the election, nothing—crickets. They can't get an appointment with the Albanese government; they don't want to know about it. They are running away from their pre-election commitments again on manufacturing, particularly for small and medium businesses.

The Prime Minister proposed we would be better off under his government. But the fact is, under Labor, businesses are not only being hit with higher energy prices and more union interference but they are now also being told to brace for blackouts as soon as this summer. You would think that this government would try and fix the labour market shortage for manufacturers to meet their orders and consumer demand but, instead, they are neglecting the labour market and adding further strain on already disrupted supply chains.

What will we on this side do in relation to this bill? We will not be supporting it. It is bad policy. It is just like their super changes—bad policy. So if you want to actually get some support from this side of the House, come up with proposals that will help the Australian people, that are not bad policy and that are just looking after your union mates.

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