Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Climate Change and Energy. Will the minister confirm that the government will meet its renewable energy target of 82 per cent by 2030?

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I can absolutely confirm it is this government's intention to continue to work towards that target in 2030. Absolutely! And I'm pleased to tell the honourable member that we are making very good progress towards it. It is 2025, we are working towards that 2030 target and we're making good progress. In the last financial year, 4.4 gigawatts of new renewable energy were added to the grid—not investment decisions, but added to the grid; up and running. But the pipeline was 15.6 gigawatts, which is a massive amount of renewable energy. I know it upsets those opposite to hear those points.

Just this week, it was announced there was a billion dollars to be invested in Australia's renewable energy system by a very large international investor. This is good news—at least we think it is on this side of the House. Just today, AGL announced a multihundred-million dollar investment in energy storage in our country, which is a good thing. All this leads to an addition to the renewable energy pipeline for our country. We think that's a good thing; they think it's a bad thing.

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Has the minister concluded his answer?

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, the minister was very clear with his response. He did address the question within seconds of the direct question he was asked. I fail to see how on earth there could possibly be a question on relevance here, when he specifically addressed the question. So I will not take frivolous points of order on relevance. I'm just giving the member fair warning that the minister was asked a question and he responded directly to it.

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My point of order is on relevance. It's a serious point of relevance, and I would like some reverence as I deal with that relevance.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Get to the point.

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question very clearly asks: 'will the government meet'? It didn't talk about intentions; it talked about will the government meet its renewable—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Resume your seat. Look, we're going down a bad path here. People don't like the answer to the question and we're getting into the semantics of exactly—the minister was being directly relevant within seconds of answering your question. You might not have liked it, but, you know, we've got to be real here, so I'm asking everyone to get with the program. Minister, in continuation.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In addition to that big battery that has been announced today, I can confirm what the Prime Minister told the House just a few moments ago: in the last four weeks, 18,336 Australian households have added a battery to their household under the Albanese government's cheaper home battery policy.

The honourable gentleman opposite asked me, 'Will we meet our targets?' I believe we will. But we also know what that target is and I believe in it. It takes some temerity from those opposite to ask this side of the House about meeting our targets when they can't agree on whether they have a target! The House, just before question time, voted to bring on the member for New England's bill for a vote next sitting week. You know who voted to bring on the bill? This side of the House plus the member for New England. Everybody else over there voted against the House getting the chance to vote on a bill—even the seconder of the bill, the second person in the bromance, the member for Riverina. We know what our targets are, we know how to get there. We intend to get there. They don't even know what their target is.

I apologise to the member for Riverina for the connection with the member for New England.

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The standing orders are going to be followed, and I'm going to call the member for Riverina on a point of order. The question's finished. It's not about relevance. I'll ask you to assist the House with what the point of order is on.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's for the sake of accuracy. I didn't second the bill; the member for Flynn did. So get your facts right for once.