Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Prime Minister, you'd be aware that three appropriations bills before the House require a hundred billion dollars in funding. The appropriation 10 years ago required only $50 billion. Another $50 billion is required to house the 400,000 people coming from overseas each year, particularly the 92 per cent of them who go to Sydney and Melbourne. Wouldn't the urgent demand of 80 per cent of Australians to stop migration save $50 billion this year, plus wouldn't a reserve resource policy on gas provide another $32 billion a year? Greenlighting the Galilee coal project and its rail line would provide yet another $17 billion. Shouldn't the government be about carrying out the will of the people and creating economic development?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I make two points to the member for Kennedy before I ask the Minister for Resources to comment on the issues you raise regarding resources policy. First, regarding the will of the people, those are called elections, and we have a proud democracy in this country. I defend it. And people in this country voted for a government that would understand that modern Australia is, as the minister has just reflected, a different nation to the one it was under the White Australia policy some time ago. They voted for a government that would understand that our diversity is a strength in modern Australia, and it provides us with incredible economic opportunity as well, due to the diaspora here and their connections with every country on the planet.

With regard to the figures—I don't accept some of the figures that he's raised. I'm not sure what the basis of them is, but I can refer to the latest NOM—the net overseas migration—which was down 37 per cent on an annual figure in the last figures that were raised in 2024. I'd ask the minister to comment.

Madeleine King (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Prime Minister. The member for Kennedy referred to a resources reservation policy, and I'm happy to discuss that briefly. There are now many calls across many parts of the community for reservations of gas, in particular. This is something brought on by industrial users and manufacturers. Indeed, even those opposite have announced a reservation policy of their own—a great change from when they failed to support the Western Australian reservation policy, which has proved enormously successful for the price of gas and access to gas in Western Australia.

At the moment, the government has reviewed the gas market regulations. There is a consultation paper out, and there have been many submissions to it. One of the concepts we put forward as a government was around a framework to ensure that domestic supply is secured for the east coast. Another part of our resources reservation policy goes to the Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve, which is about building up a national asset to make sure that we not only have a supply of critical minerals but also are a reliable supplier of critical minerals and rare earths to our partners right around the world. It will allow us to work with our partners, together, against disruptions and from a position of real strength.

I look forward to the member for Kennedy's support for that reserve. I note that those opposite were very quick to dismiss the reserve and, indeed, oppose it, which is quite unusual, given they support a gas reserve but not a critical minerals reserve. That might go to some of the confusion opposite between gas and critical minerals—as we know, they have named gas as a critical mineral in the past. I hope they won't do that again. I thank the member for Kennedy for his question.