Basem Abdo (Calwell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

One thing we have made sure is that our strategic reserves are here in Australia and not in Texas, where the now leader of the opposition had them. Those opposite carry on as though only they understand what Australians feel, but I represent a community in Melbourne's outer suburbs and I understand what communities are going through at the moment with this global disruption.

We're living through a period of profound global instability, and events unfolding in the Middle East, far from our shores, are having real and immediate consequences here at home. Australians are seeing it and Australians are feeling it at the petrol pump, in industry, across small businesses and across family budgets, which are under pressure. That is the reality all across the world. A conflict thousands of kilometres away can disrupt global supply chains overnight. It can drive volatility in global energy markets, which can place real pressure on households. So we should be clear. This is not theoretical; it is real and immediate and requires a serious, calm, measured approach.

In moments like this, governments have a choice. They can stand back and hope markets adjust, or they can step up calmly and with purpose to protect everyday people right across the country, including industry and business. This government has chosen to step up, not with panic, not with slogans, but with practical, coordinated action, because Australians expect leadership. As the Prime Minister has said, we are working around the clock to make sure we deal with the fuel security issues, to keep our people, our economy and our nation moving. That's the task before us, and that's exactly what this legislation supports, working in our national interest.

Let me start with what we've already done, because this bill is not an isolated measure. It is part of a broader coordinated response. As we've also seen, they've just come out of National Cabinet. We have empowered the ACCC to protect motorists from unfair price rises, we have boosted supply by releasing additional fuel into the market, we have acted to increase supply by temporarily amending fuel standards and we are working closely with industry and with states and territories to ensure that fuel gets where it's needed most, particularly in regional communities—because supply is only part of the story; distribution also matters. When demand spikes, some communities feel that pressure first and most acutely.

That's also why the government has strengthened national coordination through the establishment of the Fuel Supply Taskforce, working across the Commonwealth, states and territories and with industry. It's about acting as one country in response to a challenge—not fragmentation, not delay, but coordination because, in a strategic environment such as this, cooperation is essential.

We must also be honest about what recent events have shown us. While Australia continues to receive sufficient fuel overall, recent events have shown how quickly global pressures can translate into local disruption. That's why preparedness matters and that's why flexibility and action matter. In an increasingly uncertain global environment, Australia must act decisively to protect its sovereign capability and secure the essentials that keep our economy moving. And, when we speak about sovereign capability, we mean it with each letter of the words—not just being sovereign, like those opposite, but being capable. That's what sovereign capability is about.

We are evolving our approach, moving along a critical minerals strategic reserve to consider a broader, more responsive national interest framework. This includes the potential to secure critical fuel supplies as well as other essential imports that underpin construction and housing. Through Export Finance Australia, we are establishing mechanisms to finance the import of fuel and other necessary goods and to provide financial derivatives and price support to purchase, sell and stockpile fuel and other necessary goods to ensure domestic availability, as and when directed by government, and to financially hedge resulting exposures as appropriate. This would ensure government has sufficient flexibility to deal with the current fuel crisis now and into the future. Right now, the challenge is about affordability and volatility, with prices surging and smaller importers facing the potential of being priced out altogether. It creates a real risk, and that's why this government is acting.

While Australia continues to receive sufficient fuel overall, through recent experience we have identified some structural vulnerabilities in our fuel security framework that we should act now to address and that we are addressing. These will help position us to manage supply chain disruptions and ensure we have a wider range of tools to respond proactively and without needing to resort to emergency powers. It's a time for national unity, not a time to play politics.

This is not about also subsidising business as usual. It's about targeted, temporary intervention, supporting contracts that would otherwise not proceed, particularly where they fill urgent gaps in local supply, including in regional areas. If companies can demonstrate that a shipment is essential but commercially unviable under current market conditions, we will step in, ensuring those cargoes come here and do not go elsewhere. This is a supply-side measure designed to get fuel into Australia, and fast. Importantly, this builds on work already underway to strengthen sovereign capability. We're not starting from scratch. We are extending a framework developed through our strategic reserves policy to meet today's challenges. I want to take this opportunity to thank the Minister for Climate Change and Energy, the Minister for Resources and the Minister for Trade and Tourism for their round-the-clock work in dealing with this global crisis.

This legislation is vital, it is timely and it is ready to move quickly. Addressing supply chain risks allows us to provide confidence to the market and ensure continuity of supply. It's about getting ahead of the curve. We are responding to global disruptions with practical, outward-looking solutions that strengthen our resilience while engaging with global markets from a position of strength. While others deal in hypotheticals and political instability, we are focused on delivery and focused on working to secure Australia's future. The Prime Minister has just announced, coming out of National Cabinet, that we've halved the fuel excise and we will reduce the heavy vehicle charge to zero for three months. That is a practical, coordinated approach—a national approach, an Australian approach—to a global crisis. This bill matters because it fills strategic gaps. It gives the government the ability to act early, to act proportionately and to stabilise the system before a situation escalates. It is about the risk-mitigation factors, adding supply here in Australia.

Getting fuel where it needs to be in this country is not a simple task. In Australia it means moving across thousands of kilometres, from ports to depots, from depots to distribution centres and from distribution centres to towns, farms and worksites and then further still, out to the edges of our economy where fuel is not just important but essential. Fuel keeps machinery running, it keeps trucks moving and it keeps businesses open. When that supply is disrupted, even briefly, the consequences are immediate. Shelves are not stocked, work is delayed and costs rise, and communities feel it straightaway.

When it hits, it often also does not land evenly in a country as broad and vast as Australia. When it travels from international markets to shipping routes to domestic supply chains and ultimately to Australian households and businesses, it often hits hardest in places that are furthest away—in regional communities and in our outer suburbs, which I am proud to represent, and in the logistics networks that hold this country together. It's why the actions that the Albanese Labor government is taking are fundamentally important. We recognise that, in a country like ours, fuel security is not just having supply somewhere. It's about getting that supply everywhere reliably, as affordable as can be in the global markets and conditions that we see today, and when it is needed most.

This legislation gives the Commonwealth the ability to step in early through Export Finance Australia to temporarily derisk the acquisition and delivery of fuel—to step in before disruption becomes crisis, to act before shortages begin to bite hard and to stabilise the system when pressure builds, particularly in regional markets, particularly in moments of volatility like now and particularly where the consequences of inaction would be felt most sharply. It does this by expanding the powers of Export Finance Australia, allowing it to provide loans, guarantees, insurance and financial arrangements to support price stability and, where necessary, purchase, sell or stockpile fuel and other essential goods. This is practical, it is targeted and it leverages expertise we already have thanks to the work the Albanese Labor government has already done on our strategic minerals reserve.

Let us be clear about what this intends to achieve. It intends to stabilise supply, keep fuel flowing, support businesses to keep operating, support communities such as mine and many right across this country to keep functioning and reduce the likelihood that we will need to resort to emergency interventions. Good policy is about acting in the national interest and acting early, it is about recognising risk before it becomes crisis and it is about putting in place the tools that allow us to respond calmly, effectively and with the confidence that this country deserves.

Fuel security, in an economic sense, is not just about supply. It is also about fairness to the everyday Australian. When global shocks hit fuel prices, the impact does not fall evenly, and nowhere is that more obvious than in our road transport sector.

I also want to recognise a group of Australians who are absolutely central to this discussion: our truck drivers and transport workers. When fuel prices spike, they don't just feel it; they carry it up and down our highways and through our supply chains—and, ultimately, they carry it into the cost of everything Australians rely on. In communities like mine, in Melbourne's outer north, across Calwell many workers are part of that supply chain. They are the drivers; they are the warehouse workers; they are the logistics operators; they are the people who keep goods moving every single day. When pressures hit this sector, they feel it first. This is not abstract policy discussion; it is affecting people's livelihoods right across my community.

That's why this government is acting. We are amending the Fair Work Act to allow truckies and transport operators to seek urgent relief through the Fair Work Commission—because fairness matters. Costs should not simply be pushed down the chain; they should be shared fairly. This ensures that the independent Fair Work Commission can act quickly, because, in a moment like this, speed and timeliness matter, responsiveness matters, and fairness will always matter and be at the forefront of the Albanese Labor government's agenda.

This legislation also looks to allow Australia to operate strategically—through long-term agreements, through participation in markets, through targeted supply acquisition and through mechanisms that provide certainty in uncertain times. If we are serious about a future made in Australia, we cannot leave critical supply chains to chance. We must be deliberate, we must be prepared and we must always act in Australia's national interests—and today's measures are targeted. In moments like these, tone matters. This is a global crisis, not a political opportunity or a time for shouting and theatrics, like we saw from the Leader of the Opposition just before. It is not a time for noise or to spread confusion or contradictions in words and policy. The Prime Minister put it plainly: we will do whatever is necessary; it is about being overprepared. That is the leadership and the responsibility that drives the work of this government each and every day.

Our approach to strategic reserves couldn't be more different than that of those opposite. We recognise that resources that will power the next generation of industry are of national importance. We believe in sovereign capability—not just putting it in titles. It is not just about acting sovereign; it is also being capable. Australians understand something simple: they need coordination and they need a government that acts. This bill is about energy sovereignty, it is about Australia's economic resilience and it is about preparing Australia for an increasingly uncertain world that we've heard about from our partners who have addressed the parliament most recently.

In communities like mine, where people rely on transport to work, where businesses depend on supply chains and where logistics underpins local jobs, this bill matters. It is practical reform, it is forward looking and it is exactly what this moment demands. We cannot wait for crisis to arrive before we act. We must be ready, we must be resilient and we must strengthen Australia's sovereign capability in the things and areas that matter most. I commend the bill to the House.

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