House debates Questions without Notice: Additional Answers

Renewable Energy

Wednesday, 28 March 2007 House of Representatives

John Howard

John Howard Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister

3:14 pm

Mr Speaker, I seek the indulgence of the chair to add to an answer.

David Hawker

David Hawker Speaker

The Prime Minister may proceed.

John Howard

John Howard Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister

The member for Melbourne Ports asked me a question about a company called Global Renewables. I have subsequently been informed that it is a company that has been driven to locate overseas by winning a reported $5 billion waste management contract in Lancashire and that the government supported Global Renewables’ bid for this contract, including letters of support and meetings with UK officials.

Can I amplify further the comment I made about the underpinning of the state Labor governments’ proposal for a national emissions trading scheme. I said that I had been informed that part of their proposal involved a termination of the MRET scheme, which the question invited me to endorse and extend rather than to terminate. Since giving the answer, I have been handed the transparencies of a briefing that was given to the Prime Ministerial Task Group on Emissions Trading on 21 March. This was a briefing from state officials, who of course are informed on the policy proposal that the Labor governments have and which I understand the federal opposition supports. Under the heading ‘Relationship with other measures’ it contains the following dot point. After it says ‘G Gas discontinued’—that is a transitional measure—it then says ‘other schemes run their course and not renewed’. Then in brackets it reads:

NRET—

which I think was the Northern Territory renewable energies trading scheme—

VRET—

which is a Victorian renewable energies trading scheme—

Queensland 13% Gas Scheme.

The point I am making is that, simultaneously with the member asking me a question which exhorts me to increase the mandatory renewable targets, his party has a policy to phase them out.