House debates

Monday, 25 October 2021

Questions without Notice

Climate Change

2:18 pm

Photo of Anthony AlbaneseAnthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Now that the Prime Minister supports Labor's policy of net zero emissions by 2050, will he also support Labor's policy to legislate net zero emissions by 2050?

2:19 pm

Photo of Scott MorrisonScott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | | Hansard source

The coalition does not support Labor's policy, because the Labor Party have a target with no plan. That is not the coalition policy. The policy of the coalition is to have a plan with a target so people actually know what we plan to do to achieve the target that they want to achieve. We have been working through carefully, considering all of the implications.

Photo of Tony SmithTony Smith (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will resume his seat. The Leader of the Opposition on a point of order?

Photo of Scott MorrisonScott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | | Hansard source

I've only been going for 30 seconds!

Photo of Anthony AlbaneseAnthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | | Hansard source

Yes, Mr Speaker. I'd ask the Prime Minister to table his plan if he's got one. We're all waiting for it.

Photo of Tony SmithTony Smith (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

There's no point of order. That's no point of order. The Prime Minister has the call.

Photo of Scott MorrisonScott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | | Hansard source

Soon enough, don't worry. Soon enough. Don't worry. The Australian people will know our plan, but they won't know the Labor Party's plan. They won't know the Labor Party's plan because, despite having said they wanted to achieve net zero by 2050 for some years now, there is still no plan for how they will achieve it. There is still no estimate of what it will cost. Labor don't even have a 2030 target, let alone a plan for how they will achieve their 2050 target.

But what the Australian people know is that the same genius on the Labor side who came up with the retirees tax, the same genius who came up with the housing tax and the superannuation tax, the same genius who came up with all of those economy-destroying policies is the same genius that the leader of the Labor Party was relying on for the Labor Party to achieve a 2050 net zero outcome. The only net zero outcome that'll come from the Labor Party is what will happen to the Australian people and their prosperity—because you cannot trust Labor with an economic plan to deliver on a net zero 2050 target.

Our plan is clear: technology, not taxes. We're not going to be mandating or shutting down industries; we're going to let people make their own choices. We're going to make sure there's a portfolio of technologies that we can bring to scale and bring to affordability, backed up by getting the balance right between affordable, reliable power and ensuring that we're achieving the lower emissions outcomes that we're seeking. And we will be absolutely transparent about that, because that is one of the things that the Australian government have delivered year in, year out—being fully transparent about our emissions reductions, across the world, which shows that we are 20 per cent down. Labor have no plan for their target. They've signed up Australia and they want to put it in law, and they can't even tell Australians how they'll do it or how much it'll cost. It's just a re-run, a Bill 2.0.