Barnaby Joyce (New England, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. We have been approached so many times in our offices about what is happening with this fuel issue. It's ridiculous to say that there is not an issue out there—it's patently absurd. What has been asked of me to ask you is: how quickly can we organise a meeting between the independent distributors, the ACCC and you—I'm happy to take the Minister for Climate Change and Energy as well if you wish—to address these issues so you can hear from the ground up? They're watching this. They really want to know what your answer is going to be.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I don't need the member for New England's invitation to consult with the ACCC; we've been doing it through the course of today. The government has made it very clear through the good work of ministers right across our frontbench that we are prepared to engage with industry, with regulators and with everyone who has an interest in making sure that we can continue to supply petrol and diesel at fair prices right around the country. In the last hour or so, Minister Bowen, Assistant Minister Leigh and I have made some important announcements about additional steps that we will be taking in this regard.

We are taking additional action to help consumers get a fair go at the pump, with more scrutiny and surveillance of the fuel sector, bigger penalties for misconduct and action to shore up fuel supply. We have acknowledged that, even though there is enough fuel supply in this country, there are pressures in particular areas, and we've demonstrated a willingness to work with the industry, with the regulators and with others to ensure that we fix those issues in the supply chain. We've also made it clear that the conflict—

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

Treasurer will pause. The member for New England was asked about a meeting, and the Treasurer has indicated exactly to that part of the question that he's answered. I'm not going to just entertain points of order because people don't like the answer.

Barnaby Joyce (New England, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The point of order is on relevance. They're listening, wanting to know when they can have this meeting with you.

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

I think the Treasurer is providing information regarding that timing. At the beginning of his answer, he indicated who he'd been meeting with.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I also inform the House that the minister for energy has been talking with the independent suppliers even today—potentially multiple times today—for the work that we have done and the announcements that we have made today. The announcements have three important parts: working with industry to increase fuel supply to service stations, including by helping the fuel sector secure ACCC authorisation to coordinate supply and unlock bottlenecks; tasking the ACCC to ramp up its surveillance, particularly of unusual price spikes; and doubling the penalties for false or misleading conduct and cartel behaviour to a maximum of $100 million per offence across the economy.

So, the point that I'm making—and I say this respectfully to the member for New England—is that we don't need his invitation to engage with the industry. We've been doing that all along. We've been engaging with the ACCC as well, and that's why we've been able to make this announcement in the last hour or so.

As I said before and as the others have said, including the minister, the conflict overseas can't be seen as an excuse to profit off Australians. We are putting the petrol companies on notice. We won't cop big corporates treating Australian consumers like mugs. The steps we're taking today, in addition to the steps we have already taken, are all about getting fairer petrol prices for Australian motorists and more fuel supply at service stations, particularly in regional areas. We have spent a lot of time—I pay tribute to my ministerial colleagues for the work that we have put into this issue—and have been working through these issues in a methodical and considered way. And, as the transport minister made clear before, if those opposite really cared about fuel security, they wouldn't be engaged in the kind of scaremongering which makes things worse rather than better.