Craig Laundy (Reid, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for the Environment. I refer to the list of liable entities released by the Clean Energy Regulator last week that shows—

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There will be silence on my left!

Craig Laundy (Reid, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I will start again. I refer to the list of liable entities released by the Clean Energy Regulator last week that shows the carbon tax hit New South Wales with more than $1.6 billion in additional costs in 2014. How will removing the carbon tax that fails to do anything for the environment ease cost-of-living pressures for New South Wales businesses and families and businesses and families in my electorate of Reid?

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I particularly want to thank the member for Reid because I am delighted to get a question about the environment, given that we have gone 9½ months with over 400 questions from the opposition but not one question about the environment. How many question from the opposition about the environment? Zero; not one.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There will be silence on my left, including the member for Kingsford Smith!

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You are a courageous bunch, aren't you? Not one. In all of that time I would have been delighted to have had one about turtles, dugongs, the Reef Trust, the Green Army—you name it. Call me now, Bill. We would love to get one. Let the member for Port Adelaide go. Having said that, the member for Reid rightly made the point in his question that this tax does nothing for the environment, it has no significant impact on emissions, but does have a massive impact on families.

Ms O'Neil interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Hotham will desist!

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In New South Wales over two years what have we seen?

Ms Butler interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Griffith left yesterday. If she is anxious to leave again, she will keep it up.

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In New South Wales over two years what we have seen is a $3.4 billion hit to the economy. What we have seen is a $2.1 billion hit to electricity prices.

Ms O'Neil interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Hotham is warned!

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

So right now we can do something about the cost of living.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, I have a point of order.

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is good to have you back.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will resume his seat. I call the Manager of Opposition Business on a point of order.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

To be relevant the minister himself told us that he had to talk about the environment. He has not managed to stay there for three minutes.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will resume his seat. Before the minister resumes—

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

About 1,000 times a day I ask myself what would Bill do and then I do the opposite—1,000 times a day. I want to read a quote to you. The quote goes:

The Government has decided to terminate the carbon tax to help cost-of-living pressures …

Opposition members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will resume his seat. It is impossible to hear the answer. There are people who are listening. There is a general warning issued. The minister has the call.

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I quote:

The Government has decided to terminate the carbon tax to help cost-of-living pressures for families and to reduce costs for small business

Who said that? One Kevin Rudd. Who was standing next to him? The member for McMahon and the member for Port Adelaide.

Mr Giles interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Scullin will remove himself under standing order 94(a).

The member for Scullin then left the chamber.

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They know that, if the carbon tax is taken away, it will reduce cost-of-living pressures. They know that it will reduce electricity prices for the member for Reid's residents, for his constituents. It is possible to reduce electricity prices, as we have seen from the New South Wales regulator, from the Queensland regulator, and from AGL and Origin. So if you want to do something about the cost of living—if you want to get rid of a system that does not work—it is very simple: repeal the carbon tax and, just this once, Bill, say 'Yes.'

Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you for letting him call me anything he wants, Madam Speaker.

A government member: You haven't even got the call!

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition does not have the call. He will resume his seat. Continually, throughout that last answer, he was speaking in a disrespectful way to the chair, which I chose to ignore; but I simply will not ignore it now. I say to him: there is need for some decorum in this place and it has to come from the leaders. The noise is coming from this side of the House and you do not have to be a genius to work out why. I want to have some decorum back in the House and if it means throwing out the ringleaders of the noise, then so be it.