Melissa Price (Durack, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Science) Share this | Hansard source

It is a great honour to return to this place for a fifth term as the duly elected member of Durack. The responsibility of representing the largest electorate in the country is not lost on me. Covering over 1.4 million square kilometres, over half of Western Australia, Durack brings with it such a diversity of people, communities and issues that need addressing. Before diving into some of these issues, I would like to give thanks to everybody who helped to get me here. Being elected five times doesn't just happen, and it's in large part because of my electorate office team I have behind me, some of whom have been with me from the very start. So I give enormous thanks to you, De-Arne, Carolyn, Jackie, Leanne, Clare, Gen and Don, for all your support and your commitment to serving our fabulous Durack community.

I'd also like to thank my volunteers. I'm sure colleagues across all sides of the chamber would agree that having a friendly face at the booth makes a real difference to our constituents. There are a few in particular I would like to give a special shout-out to: Rob Dines; Kat Jackson; Randall Starling; Sally and George Gifford, who I call my Gingin heroes; Greg Kneale—he's my guy in the Pilbara—and Celia and Helen, who are definitely my Broome angels. And, of course, a very special mention goes to my Brad for all his care and support during and after each of the five campaigns. I simply could not do my job without you, and Durack constituents effectively get a two-for-one with Brad by my side. I want to also acknowledge the other Durack candidates who put their hand up at this election. I met many of you during the campaign and commend you and your volunteers for being part of the democratic process. Whilst we may disagree on the means to achieve a better Australia, we all want to see a brighter future, especially for regional Western Australians.

As we are all aware, the Liberal Party did suffer a very heavy national defeat on election night. However, these results were not echoed in regional Western Australia. In my own seat of Durack, Labor went backwards by 5.5 per cent, and, in the member for O'Connor's seat, Labor went backwards by 6.6 per cent. It's clear to me one of the reasons for this diversion from the national trend was the local response to the Albanese Labor government's destructive decision to end the WA live sheep trade. There are communities across regional Western Australia whose very existence is threatened by Labor's ban, and they were not going to let this happen without a fight. I heard from a lot of people that they had always been Labor voters, but they simply could not vote for them again because of this issue.

Regional communities have a very good habit of standing together when an outsider comes to tell them what can and cannot happen. In acknowledging the role live export had in Durack, I would also like to acknowledge the people behind Keep the Sheep. This was an organisation formed simply out of desperation to save an industry and the livelihoods of at least 3,000 Western Australians. In just a short amount of time, they managed to secure the signatures of over 100,000 fellow Australians who also wanted to tell the government that this decision was deeply unfair. With the ban set to take effect on 1 May 2028, I will continue to advocate on behalf of those affected communities across Durack.

This term I will also continue to talk about the importance of restoring the Australian dream of homeownership. We have seen young Australians practically give up on this dream in recent years, and this is a national crisis that requires immediate action. Supply is obviously part of the problem, but we have to be serious in acknowledging that demand plays its part as well.

Ten years ago my home state of Western Australia had a population of less than 2½ million people. Today, it has grown to over three million. This growth has been primarily driven by overseas migration. Let me be clear: Australia has a long and proud history of migration. But it is absolutely essential that policymakers wake up and realise that such high levels of growth are simply unsustainable. The current migration program is putting a heavy burden on housing, infrastructure and the hospital system. I was staggered by a recent report identified by the WA Liberal Party which showed that, since the WA Labor government took office in 2017, the number of daily active beds in metropolitan hospitals has increased by just 118. In that same time, the population has grown by 400,000. Is it any wonder that our WA health system is not working as it ought to?

The Albanese Labor government sought to neutralise this issue before the last election by promising to curb international student numbers and insisting that net migration would come down. Just three short months later, however, the government announced that it would increase the international student cap by 25,000 per year. This follows net migration numbers being consistently higher than Labor's budget projections.

Let's be clear about this. Labor's broken promises on migration are just pouring more fuel on the fire. Sadly, there are members opposite who—despite what they said at the time of the election—refuse even to admit that this high level of net migration is a problem, and instead resort to name-calling those who do.

I would like to state very clearly here that it is not bigoted or racist to say that Australia's migration system must work for those who are already here—those who've already chosen to call Australia home. Nor is it bigoted or racist to say that, right now, that isn't the case. I'm very proud of the incredibly diverse, multicultural community that makes up the electorate of Durack.

The coalition came to government in 2013 largely because of out-of-control illegal migration. I believe the coalition could return to government by promising to combat Labor's out-of-control legal migration. Energy will, of course, be similarly important for us to establish a pathway back to government. Australians are figuring out on their own that Labor's farcical renewables-only strategy is not working. Australians can figure that out all by themselves. They see it in their power bills, which have not gone down by the $275 promised by the Prime Minister.

The coalition has announced a policy development process relating to the energy and emissions reduction policies we will take to the next election. But two fundamental principles will underpin this work: (1) having a stable, reliable energy grid which provides affordable power for households and business; and (2) reducing emissions in a responsible, transparent way that ensures that Australia does its fair share. What is clear, though, is that intermittent power cannot sustain a successful and robust economy. I refer to the release this week of the Quarterly update of Australia's national greenhouse gas inventory: March 2025 report. The report says that emissions have decreased by 1.4 per cent compared with the previous year. Well, that sounds like good news, doesn't it? It sounds like the government has got this all under control. But, if you investigate why the numbers have gone down, you might think again.

Emissions linked to industrial processes and product-use emissions decreased by 4.7 per cent over the year to March 2025. Guess what the primary driver of this decrease was. It was with respect to a decrease in steel production. Similarly, emissions from agriculture are down because of a reduction in livestock numbers. I previously said that there is no way Labor will meet its emissions targets, but that's not entirely true. There is a way for them to do so. And, sadly, it is by decimating our heavy industry and sending those opportunities offshore. You can do that—you can send industry offshore and reduce your emissions—but is that good for our country? I don't think so. Domestic industries that no longer exist don't produce any emissions, so there you go—you've solved the problem. Close down industry and you get a reduction in emissions. So much for the Future Made in Australia!

As the member for Durack, I also proudly represent the second-largest Indigenous population of any MP. Improving outcomes for Indigenous Australians and the communities they live in has always been a priority of mine, and I was deeply troubled to see the news recently that just four of the 19 Closing the Gap targets are on track. While the Prime Minister was at Garma announcing a bunch of money previously slated and talking about an economic plan he'd referred to the year before, I was honoured to join the Leader of the Opposition, Sussan Ley, and the shadow minister for Indigenous Australians in the Kimberley. There, we had the great pleasure of meeting with community leaders, local businesspeople and health professionals who are committed to making a real difference.

We understand that prioritising symbolism over practical action, as this government has done repeatedly, won't improve the outcomes for Indigenous Australians nor the communities that they live in. As the Leader of the Opposition has said, we will continue to fall short until we address the following: the early years, and making sure our kids go to and stay in school; the mismanagement of taxpayer dollars, as plenty of money is spent but too much keeps going to the same things over and over; and the need for proper training and real jobs. These are all important issues that we as an opposition will need to respond to through effective policy development, and I note the measured approach outlined by the Leader of the Opposition. As Sussan Ley has said, we will be constructive where we can but critical where we must, and, while our policies are under review, our values are not. To be clear, the Liberal Party stands for individual freedom, reward for effort, limited government involvement, and a prouder and stronger Australia.

On top of being returned as the member for Durack, it is an honour to have been appointed as the shadow minister for cybersecurity and as the shadow minister for science. Shortly after I was announced as the coalition shadow minister for cybersecurity, Qantas was subject to one of the biggest cyber breaches in Australia's history. With 5.7 million accounts impacted, this was a nationally significant incident, and many in this parliament were affected as well. While no credit cards, financial information, passport details or pass codes were accessed, Australians still needed to take care of the data extracted to make sure that others couldn't take advantage of that information. Australians who have trusted a business with their personal information should have faith that their information is safe. The Qantas breach and the TPG iiNet breach in recent days demonstrates that this data is vulnerable. And I think that Australians deserve better. I've outlined to the Minister for Cyber Security that we are prepared to work with the government to better protect Australians' data, just as we did in the last parliament.

Australians are also right to be concerned about malicious cyberactivity threatening our national security. As the government's own latest Annual cyber threat report outlines, Australia is confronting its worst and most complex strategic environment since World War II, and this includes growing threats in cyberspace. State sponsored cyberoperations are ongoing and are an escalating concern, particularly as strategic competition intensifies across the Indo-Pacific. These actors are engaged in intelligence gathering, interference, coercion and attempts to gain a foothold within critical networks. Should the strategic environment deteriorate significantly, Australia could face major and disruptive cyberattacks.

The director-general of ASIO recently announced that the cost of espionage adds up to $12.5 billion a year, much of which is conducted in cyberspace. He outlined that the nations trying to steal our secrets include China, Russia and Iran. We should not be afraid to acknowledge the threat such nations pose, and we must improve our capacity to respond, particularly as the strategic competition increases. We should take reports that China is winning the cyberwar very seriously and respond with immediate action. We must work with our partners, especially the United States, to create a strong and united bloc that can withstand and respond to attacks.

Advancing cyber capabilities is, of course, an important aspect of AUKUS Pillar 2. To be clear, cybersecurity is national security. The coalition has called on Labor to commit to increasing defence spending to at least three per cent of GDP. This is incredibly important if we are to deliver AUKUS and to project collective strength. I believe Labor should also consider greater investment in cyberdefences, as has been committed to by the NATO alliance in the face of Russian aggression. NATO's recent commitment was to lift core defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP and spend a further 1.5 per cent of GDP on broader defence and security related investments, including cyber.

I'm also very pleased to be returning to the Science portfolio. I had the great honour of being the Minister for Science and Technology during the Morrison government, and it has been so good to reconnect with stakeholders from that time and to connect with new ones as well. I am particularly excited to be back involved with the Australian civil space industry. When we were in government we established the Australian Space Agency and invested a record amount aimed at growing this very important industry. I moved a private member's motion on Monday in this place, outlining that, unfortunately, a lot of this investment was wound back in Labor's first term—very disappointing for the Australian space industry. I know Madam Deputy Speaker Sharkie, being a South Australian, will understand that only too well. This included Labor's decision to abolish the $1.2 billion National Space Mission for Earth Observation and to strip funding from the Technology into Orbit program, the Moon to Mars program, and the Spaceports program.

I was pleased to join the Parliamentary Friends of Space industry event last night and speak to members of the Space Industry Association of Australia. Despite Labor's cuts, there are still plenty of opportunities for Australia to benefit from the space revolution, but it is important the government start to send the right signals, right now, that will drive further investment. The upcoming International Astronautical Congress in Sydney provides the government with a great opportunity to begin to undo the damage of their first term.

In addition to space, I have, in recent months, been connecting with our universities and leading scientists. Increasing engagement in STEM—being science, technology, engineering and maths—has never been more important than right now. These are the skills Australia needs, and making sure more young Australians, and women in particular, move into STEM is a priority for me in this portfolio. I wrote to the Minister for Science, Senator Tim Ayres, in July requesting a briefing on the government's plan for the Science portfolio; I'm yet to hear back from Minister Ayres, but I've said before we will work constructively with the government where we can. I look forward to receiving a response from Minister Ayres.

I'll conclude by again thanking my electorate of Durack for giving me the great honour of once again serving as their federal representative. I will work every day to ensure their voices are heard and will try my best to represent both those who voted for me and those who did not. To me, as a member of the opposition, it is clear we have a big job ahead of us, but I can guarantee to the people of Durack that we are up to it. Those opposite currently hold 94 seats, an almost unimaginable result before election day. It is clear that the Prime Minister and the members behind him are still riding high and feeling pretty good about themselves, and anyone watching question time has already seen the hubris from those opposite coming across the chamber. But I'd like to remind those opposite that politics should not be about personal victories. Politics must deliver tangible results for Australians—for all Australians. It is my hope that this 48th Parliament delivers far more than the 47th.

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