Nola Marino (Forrest, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is for the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. Will the minister update the House on the importance of reliable and affordable energy to drive growth in key export industries? Is the minister aware of any threats to export growth and the jobs that it creates?

Steven Ciobo (Moncrieff, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Forrest for her question. Like me, the member for Forrest is very invested in making sure we continue to open up export markets for Australian businesses. I was pleased recently to have the opportunity to go with the member for Forrest to her electorate to speak with a number of small exporters who are based in the electorate. All are contributing to Australia's multibillion dollar export track record. We were in Busselton and Bunbury and I had the opportunity to speak to a number of these exporters, including representatives from Churchview Estate wines in the Margaret River region. All of these exporters are benefitting from the coalition's strong agenda in opening up export market access. We've seen, particularly as a result of the trifecta of agreements that we have with Japan, Korea and China, that wine exports are up. In Korea, wine exports are up some 70 per cent. Wine exports into China under the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement—which, you will remember, Labor were opposed to until one minute to midnight—are up some 38 per cent.

What is crystal clear, though—and this is the message from industry—is that, in order to be able to remain competitive and keep exporting, these exporters must have a reliable and stable supply of energy. The coalition is absolutely committed to that. That's why we have put in place important decisions like the Australian Domestic Gas Security Mechanism, the ADGSM—

Mr Keogh interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Burt is warned.

Steven Ciobo (Moncrieff, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

to make sure we fix Labor's mess on gas exports.

Mr Keogh interjecting—

We're also putting in place a reliable supply of electricity—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Burt will leave under 94(a).

The member for Burt then left the chamber.

Steven Ciobo (Moncrieff, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

and the Winemakers' Federation has reinforced us. They have said:

Recent increases to price are severely impacting on wine and grape businesses viability and our ability to compete on a global market.

That's what the wine industry has said. If we want to keep exporting premium wines, or even if we want to export cleanskins, reliable energy is crucial.

Speaking of cleanskins, I came across a pretty interesting article about cleanskins recently in The Sydney Morning Herald. It was titled 'Cleanskin who can renew Labor', and I thought, 'This is going to be a fascinating article.' It turns out that the cleanskin who can renew Labor is the member for Blaxland. I'm a big fan of the member for Blaxland, although I'm not as big a fan as the member for Lindsay. I thought, 'Well, perhaps he's got a shot at the title.' In this article, the member for Blaxland says:

I'm not interested in being prime minister. Really, the dream job for me is to one day be education minister …

The member for Sydney is not here, so maybe there's a chance for him to be shadow education minister. But I want to give the member for Blaxland one piece of advice: if he wants the top job, he'll have to be very careful, because we've seen that the member for Grayndler is willing to shoulder people out the way to get up there. I suggest he just bides his time.