Elizabeth Watson-Brown (Ryan, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

It's almost a year that Brisbane residents have had to wait for the government response to the Senate inquiry into flight noise that the Greens secured back in 2024. Almost a year we've waited for the government response, and there's not much to show for it. Only four of 21 recommendations were supported, with no meaningful action for residents actually affected by flight noise. And, to add insult to injury, the response is dated April 2025, suggesting that it has been sitting on the minister's desk for six months. It's incredibly disrespectful to a community that was holding out hope for actual change from these recommendations.

The recommendations most directly affecting Brisbane residents were 4, 5 and 6, so I want to break down what those would have meant for noise reduction. Recommendation 4 was to prioritise SODPROPS usage, which is a mode where all flights land and depart over water to minimise noise. The government did actually support this one because, theoretically, they had already implemented it via a 2024 ministerial direction secured thanks to Greens pressure. However, that direction has failed to get even close to meeting the Airservices target of 5.3 per cent. It's barely half that.

Recommendation 5 was around continuous-climb-and-descent operations. This means steady climbs and descents without levelling off at a particular altitude which creates more noise. This one really should be a no-brainer. It also saves fuel and, therefore, emissions. But the government won't commit to doing it, referring only to their predictive sequencing trials, which are at high altitude, not at the lower altitudes where noise reduction is most needed.

Recommendation 6 would have meant restricting night operations to only aircraft that meet the chapter 14 ICAO standards—so newer aircraft that are actually quieter. This could have presented perhaps the most significant change for Brisbane residents because, according to the final inquiry report, it would mean moving the notoriously loud and disruptive 2 am Emirates flight, operated on the massive A380 aircraft, out of night operations. But, just like with the other recommendations, the government can't bring itself to do anything meaningful that would negatively impact the profits of the aviation industry.

We know from Senate estimates that the minister regularly meets with Qantas, Virgin, the airports and lobby groups but in over three years has not made any time to actually meet with Brisbane residents affected by their operations. So it's no wonder that this response is so profoundly disappointing and, frankly, insulting. But let's not lose heart. I won't stop fighting for real action, and I know Brisbane residents won't either.

Here's a general economic rule. If the government doesn't invest in public research for the public good, you get an economy skewed towards the most base, extractive and profit-seeking sectors. Labor and the coalition, instead of using the wealth generated from our resources to diversify our economy to make Australia more self-reliant and more sovereign, have actually doubled down on our dependence on primary industries, finance and our relationship with the US.

As a case in point, Labor has overseen 800 job cuts at the CSIRO in the past 18 months. Now there are another 350 jobs on the chopping block. There are only around 6,000 workers at CSIRO. We are talking nearly one in five jobs lost. These job losses are worse than under the former coalition government. This government claims it can't properly fund the CSIRO, but it can fund $15 billion in fossil fuel subsidies each year. It can fund $375 billion for nuclear submarines that we probably won't even receive. It can fund $15 billion for property investor tax breaks each year. Science and research may not have the cashed-up lobby groups of these industries, but we desperately need them. Australia's already lagging way behind the rest of the OECD on R&D spending, and we are ranked very low globally for economic complexity. We're heading further and further down the path of a distorted, dependent economy.

The Treasurer said productivity would be the focus of this government. Well, the underfunding of the CSIRO gives the lie to that. CSIRO has brought us fast wi-fi, the Hendra vaccine and insect repellent, among many other great things. CSIRO needs investment to deliver the innovation we need for a resilient and prosperous future for Australia.

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