I have received a letter from the honourable Manager of Opposition Business proposing that a definite matter of public importance be submitted to the House for discussion, namely:

The Government's failing energy policies crippling industry and households.

I call upon those honourable members who approve of the proposed discussion to rise in their places.

More than the number of members required by the standing orders having risen in their places—

Last night we saw something quite extraordinary. On 7.30, the Minister for Climate Change and Energy declared:

… I never quite bought all the hype on green hydrogen …

Yet he put $9 billion into green hydrogen! Now imagine if he had bought the hype. Where would we have ended up? $18 billion? $27 billion? Who knows where the taxpayers' largesse would have stopped? On the back of him not buying into the hype on green hydrogen, he also said this on 13 April 2023:

Today's release of the annual State of Hydrogen report reinforces that Australia has the foundations to become a global leader in green hydrogen.

On 23 May 2024, he said:

Now some people might think, oh, you know, is green hydrogen real, is it going to happen? Well, it's already being manufactured right there in Gladstone …

I wonder what the member up the back thinks of that. I'm sure we'll hear from him at some stage. On 18 December 2023 the minister said:

And if we're going to play our role in decarbonising that is one of the key and essential roles that we can play, developing an Australian green hydrogen industry and exporting it.

On 18 January 2024 he said:

Firstly, of course, our Government wants Australia to be a hydrogen superpower, a green hydrogen superpower.

The list goes on and on and on.

If this is what the minister thought not buying in was, what the hell is he doing? What is he thinking—or doesn't he think? This is the worry. It's just all green ideology. It's just pure and utter green ideology. And I say to the minister: have you forgotten your promise to the Australian people for $275 off every power bill? Not only that, have you forgotten your promise to the Australian people that you would support manufacturing jobs? As a matter of fact, the Prime Minister went to Whyalla, and he's quoted as saying he was going to 'secure all those jobs'. That's what the Prime Minister said.

Now, should we add this up as another broken promise? He didn't fall of a stage. We know that ripper. He didn't insult the Japanese prime minister. We know that one. The $275 off your power bill wasn't delivered. When it comes to negative gearing, when it comes to capital gains, when it comes to tax on trusts—I think it was more than 50 times. What happened when it comes to looking after our veterans? Was anything said before the last election about hitting veterans with a $750 million cap? No, there wasn't. Was anything said to pensioners in Australia that they'd be hit with additional costs for their private health insurance? That affects 1.5 million pensioners.

And then there are those steelworkers in Whyalla—over 600 of them. As the local member said in the first question today, over 600 of them were promised by the Prime Minister that their jobs were safe. He was happy to go to Whyalla, happy to go to Whyalla and stand there with them and say it, yet, once the jobs go, he gets asked a question today in question and he won't even take the question. What a disgrace! What an utter disgrace. He just flicks it. Six hundred jobs—just flicks it.

I think this is the worst and greatest insult. We have the Minister for Climate Change and Energy spending $150 million on a pre-COP in Fiji and Tuvalu which is all about his so-called presidency—$150 million and no-one's going. As a matter of fact, what I'm hearing is they're all going to Turkiye, and that's really upsetting the minister for climate change. They're all going to Turkiye and they're not going to his, and that's meant to be really upsetting him. But this is the worst part of it. There is $150 million for that, but what are the workers being offered in Whyalla? So far, there is $10 million after being promised that their jobs were secure forever, that the steelworks was secure forever. The Prime Minister won't even own the question he was asked today. Seriously, where is such arrogance towards workers when you can have a prime minister who will do that to fellow Australians who have lost their jobs? Not only have they lost their jobs, but their families will be impacted and their community will be impacted. I do not think the Prime Minister quite understands what happens when you take that amount of jobs out of a community. We saw the minister he flicked to come up, and what was his response?

Blame everyone else.

Blame everyone else, absolutely. He would not take responsibility. He had not one solution to offer. He was happy to see those 600 million jobs just disappear before our eyes. This has a real impact. That Whyalla steelworks produces a type of steel that is unique to our country. It's the type of steel that you use in buildings. It's structural steel. It's bridges and it's buildings. That steel was used in building this Parliament House. If this Parliament House was built today, guess where we'd have to get the steel from?

IKEA.

Yes, we'd probably have to get it from IKEA or the equivalent. Seriously, that's how bad things are becoming under this Albanese Labor government. And you wonder why the front page of the Sydney Morning Herald on Monday said that Australians are losing trust in this prime minister. Well, they have sadly lost trust, and there is very good reason they've lost trust—because they know that this prime minister just makes it up. He just gaslights. He fibs. He won't tell the truth. He'll do everything other than being honest with the Australian people.

Here's a character test for the Prime Minister. I know the local member will front up at Whyalla, because he'll look after his workers. The Prime Minister on Friday should go to Whyalla and face those workers. That's what he should do. If he's got real character, having been there and promised their jobs would last forever, he should front up and tell them: 'Sorry, I've got a problem with the truth. Sorry, I've got a problem with being direct with people. Sorry, I've got a problem with looking people in the eye and being upfront with them.' He should go and do that. That would be the right and honourable thing to do. Yet this prime minister just sits here in question time, dismisses a question about 600 workers losing their jobs, about our industrial capability going offshore. It's like, 'This is all beneath me.' It wasn't beneath him to go to Whyalla and look those workers in the eye, so he should do exactly the same on Friday when he leaves here—go and look them in the eye and apologise.

The Australian Labor Party is the party of workers, and we will always back Australian manufacturing and Australian jobs. Of course, this is a very distressing time for workers affected at Whyalla, and we absolutely stand with them. But we will not be lectured by those opposite on support for workers, not with their track record. Our message to the people of Whyalla is that we will be working with them. We will be working with the South Australian government towards outcomes that support both the city and the region. We are supporting workers now while creating the conditions for a new owner to invest in a stronger, more sustainable future for Whyalla and Australian steelmaking, and we will be there every step of the way with these workers.

But those opposite are never straight with workers. They buy into conspiracy theories rather than outcomes. They take cheap shots rather than back workers. They're never on the side of workers. We certainly will not be lectured by those opposite about our commitment to Australian manufacturing. Those opposite, when in government, sat by when then treasurer Joe Hockey goaded car manufacturers to leave the country, with, when they left, devastating outcomes for workers in South Australia and in my home state of Victoria. Those opposite sat on their hands while those manufacturers left this country. They goaded them to leave. It is absolutely galling that at this moment those opposite would seek to create an ideological fight over the future of workers in South Australia, who this government is backing.

It is a reality that, after a decade of delay, dysfunction and denial, the Albanese government is getting on with rebuilding Australia's energy grid with the lowest-cost form of energy, renewable energy. We acknowledge the reality that our coal-fired power stations are ageing and they are becoming increasingly unreliable. Again, those opposite ignored this for a decade, and Australian energy users have been paying the price.

As a government we are working towards cheaper, cleaner energy in our system—a better deal for households. We're focused on the long-term changes that permanently cut bills, make the system fairer and keep the lights on. And we are headed in the right direction. Last year we saw a record number of renewable projects given the green light and millions of Australians benefiting from a cleaner, more reliable electricity grid that will lower energy bills for good.

We are seeing households vote with their feet as they realise the benefits of cheaper, cleaner, renewable energy for them. Australia has the highest uptake of rooftop solar in the world. Since July last year, more than 540,000 Australian households and businesses have installed batteries through the government's Cheaper Home Batteries Program. I get to visit lots of these households and talk to the people who have installed a battery. They're quick to show me their apps and to explain how they've been able to take back control of their energy use and lower their power bills.

I've met with Glen and Amanda from Templestowe, in the member for Menzies's electorate, a retired couple who are making significant savings on their electricity bills through their rooftop solar and their battery. I've met with John from Mill Park, in the member for Scullin's electorate. John has an electric vehicle, a home charger and solar panels, and he's in credit on his power bill. He couldn't speak more highly of the difference that rooftop solar and a battery are making to him. I've met with Elizabeth and Eric from Cranbourne, in the member for Holt's electorate, pensioners who are benefiting from greater energy independence and lower bills. Elizabeth and Eric are among more than 2,400 households in Holt that have installed a cheaper home battery. Again, they've told me it's given them greater control over their energy bills and greater confidence that they're doing their bit as part of our bid for a cleaner future. Andrew from Diamond Creek, in the member for McEwen's electorate, is part of a family of four using solar panels and a battery to power their home and their pool, helping them to keep the pool going while also keeping their energy bills down. Australians get this. They get that the transition is on. Those opposite have missed the memo.

Last month, electric vehicle sales overtook petrol car sales in Australia for the first time, as more drivers chose lower running costs and greater choice. More than 27,000 battery electric vehicles were sold, a new monthly record. In some ways this seems remarkable because it's not so long since a former prime minister from that side told us all that electric vehicles would 'ruin the weekend'. Well, Australians know better, and, again, they're voting with their feet. They're voting with their economic interests and their interests in the future. They know that household batteries and EVs are helping them take control of their power bills and drive down their energy expenses.

Of course, those opposite are the same government that offended our neighbours in the Pacific, that stepped away from the global efforts to deal with climate change and that ignored the fact that the entry price to be a serious part of the Pacific family is being serious about climate. Those opposite cannot be taken seriously when it comes to this debate.

We have acted to tackle energy bills and we know there is more to do. We've acted to help with power bill relief, through gas price caps and investing in cheap renewables, all of which the coalition opposed. We are also fixing the retail energy market to make sure that customers are getting better deals from energy retailers when it comes to this essential service.

The 2026 default market offer, which is set by the independent Australian Energy Regulator, is delivering reductions in prices for all residential and small business customers. We know we need to keep going, and in fact the Australian Energy Market Commission has warned:

Delaying the connection of renewable generation and transmission into the market would put upward pressure on residential electricity costs.

Yet this is exactly what those opposite are proposing. The coalition's costly coal scheme keeps ageing, unreliable generators running long past their use-by date. These plants do break down without warning, and every breakdown means a price spike. When coal breaks down, household bills go up. Their scheme pours billions of taxpayer dollars into propping up clapped-out coal instead of building the modern grid Australians deserve—renewables backed by hydrobatteries and fast, flexible gas. They have a plan for more breakdowns, for higher prices and for wasted money, and Australians will pay for it. Australians know they will pay for it because we have the track record of those opposite. During the coalition's decade in government, 24 of the nation's 28 coal-fired power stations announced they were closing, and they did nothing to secure our energy future.

Australians cannot afford to keep paying the price of the coalition's climate infighting, their denial of what is actually happening. Let's be clear. Our government is on the track of protecting Australian industry, of backing Australian industry, of backing the transition to cleaner, cheaper renewables. In fact, research by the Clean Energy Council in March 2025 found that household power bills could rise by $449 per year by 2030 if we had greater reliance on gas and coal and if renewables were built more slowly. Household bills could rise by $606 per year by 2030 if this occurred and a major coal-fired power plant failed unexpectedly.

The energy experts agree that renewables are the cheapest form of energy and the lowest cost way to replace ageing coal. Treasury's modelling report from September 2025 states:

Not pursuing net zero by 2050 risks lower economic growth, reduced investment, missed export and employment opportunities, and higher electricity prices.

The recent International Energy Agency report found:

Across many wholesale electricity markets, especially in Europe, a higher share of renewables in the power mix has consistently led to lower prices.

That is what those of us on this side of the chamber get. That is what governments who understand, who are serious about governing and the future of this country, get. Those opposite come in here to score political points from workers who deserve to be backed, who deserve to have a government that is on their side. Fortunately for those workers in Whyalla, this government is on their side, and we will remain on their side as we continue to support Australians on the transition to cheaper, cleaner energy. We are committed to a clean, sovereign, renewable energy future where households and industries reap the benefits of cheaper, clean, reliable energy.

I rise in support of this important matter of public importance from the member for Wannon. In February this year, the Prime Minister came to Whyalla and looked the workers in the eye and said, 'I've got your back.' Today that same prime minister was too gutless to answer my question. Also today, this government couldn't even send an assistant minister, let alone Minister Bowen, to talk about this important matter.

Today is a day of national reflection. Administrators confirmed that Whyalla's blast furnace will never be relit. More than 600 workers are losing their jobs, and Australia has lost its structural-steel-making capability. Behind those numbers are boilermakers, electricians, riggers and apprentices—people I represent, people who have spent years building their skills and supporting their families. The losses don't stop there. They run through every business—the contractors, the cafes, the sporting clubs, the schools. Labor promised the people of Whyalla an orderly transition from the failures of GFG. They were delivered anything but. It shouldn't have ended this way.

Whyalla, up until this week, made 75 per cent of Australia's structural steel. It is the only place in the country that makes rail. More than a billion dollars of taxpayer money has gone into the steelworks since it entered administration. Money was not the problem. The problem was the fundamentals and the ideology. Steel is made with energy—so is aluminium, so is cement. Under this government, South Australia has the highest prices of power and gas in the industrial world. When the default market offer came out in May, the Minister for Climate Change and Energy told us that, because of renewables, prices were coming down in every jurisdiction. Well, he told another mistruth. He forgot about South Australia, the renewable capital of the nation and the only jurisdiction to see power prices increase.

Just down the road from Whyalla is the Middleback Ranges mine that supplies the steelworks. When the wind drops and the sun goes down, the energy costs too much, so they stopped the crusher. Rostering a workforce around the weather should not be the reality in Australia. It is not how you run a modern, competitive mine and steelworks. A new furnace will not fix that on its own. An electric arc furnace uses a boatload of electricity and uses a boatload of gas. Unless we get the prices down of both, the next owner will only inherit the same issues.

Then there is the carbon tax. The Safeguard Mechanism applies to Whyalla. So, while the government is bailing out the steelworks on the one hand, they are taxing it with the other. Whyalla was promised a green hydrogen revolution. What they were delivered was a hydrogen hoax—$9 billion of taxpayer money invested into a pipe dream across this country. In South Australia, $600 million was poured into a hydrogen plant at Whyalla that was quietly shelved in the shadows of the steelworks administration. It was the great cover up of 25 February. Not one electron was generated, and now we have more than 600 workers in Whyalla without a job.

Why is it that Whyalla and regional communities continue to take hit after hit for this minister's green dreams? Why is it that Whyalla Steelworks and other manufacturers continue to lose their jobs overseas because of this minister's green dreams and net zero ideology. In 2023, Minister Bowen had this to say about green hydrogen:

Green hydrogen will play a crucial role in our clean energy transformation and will create jobs and spur investment in regional Australia.

In 2024, he said:

Hydrogen is central to the Australian government's vision for a Future Made in Australia.

He also said that he was disappointed and surprised at the Queensland government's decision to pull hydrogen funding. So clearly he's a big supporter of hydrogen. But then we get to 2026, and what do you think Minister Bowen said? Yesterday, he said—

That is correct. I will ask the member to be very mindful going forward.

Yesterday, he said that he 'never quite bought all the hype on green hydrogen'. That's a bloody insult to my constituents. (Time expired)

That was a waste of five minutes.

Member for McEwen, that was very unhelpful and unnecessary. The member for Solomon has the call.

I have dealt with the matter, thank you, and I asked the member for Solomon to proceed.

I want to acknowledge my good friend the member for Jagajaga and her contribution outlining our solid commitment to Australian workers and, in the case of the topic that's being discussed now at Whyalla, to blue-collar workers. We are absolutely committed, as any reasonable person would know with our track record, to the domestic steel manufacturing industry and to securing the long-term future of those steelworks and the local jobs there. The coalition has no credible plan on supporting Australian manufacturing or Australian workers. I've been around long enough to remember Joe Hockey and the coalition forcing the car manufacturing industry out of this country.

Whyalla was well addressed by my colleague, so I'll head north. I've spoken before about Territory Gold, which is the best solar radiation in the world that cuts right through the Northern Territory but also some of our neighbouring states. The Northern Territory is at the forefront of Australia's energy transition as we become a renewable energy superpower. It's through projects like SunCable and Energy North that we'll tap the incredible potential of solar energy to power local industry, and we'll also, one day down the track, help our neighbours in ASEAN with their energy needs, with renewable energy.

Data centres are very topical. I think they're a good example, when done right. I commend our Prime Minister on the outlines for the guardrails that we're putting in around data centres and AI. But the reality is, when the communities are going to benefit and when power prices are not going to go up, some big IT players are very interested in harnessing Territory Gold, through solar, to run data centres. But these investments, as I said, must benefit the community and deliver for our national interests. Those Australian standards for AI data centres have made it clear that if you want to build here, you have to make our economy and society stronger—and that will happen with abundant renewables. Proponents are going to need to add to our energy supply, not drain it. They're going to have to strengthen the grid, not weaken it, and they're going to have to use water responsibly and offset impact. Hiring and training Australians will be essential, and our research and development, our sciences, are going to have to benefit.

These expectations are important because they put the needs of Australian people first and are possible when you embrace renewables and Australia's clean energy transition. Our federal government is going to work with the states and territories and market participants to implement the expectations, particularly through the Energy and Climate Change Ministerial Council. We all know that data centres will have enormous potential to expand new renewable investment, and it's vital that we work together across jurisdictions and with industry to get those investment settings right so that we can continue to keep our system secure and energy prices low for all consumers. Minister Bowen has stated the Commonwealth will not be standing by and letting it become a race to the bottom of states and territories falling over themselves to attract these data centres at a cost to household bills.

At the National Cabinet meeting earlier this month, it was agreed that state and territory owned power can be used if the Commonwealth, via the Australian Energy Regulator, is satisfied it won't push up bills or weaken reliability. If a jurisdiction believes it has state owned energy that is cheaper than renewable energy, it'll be able to make that case to the Commonwealth for consideration by the Australian Energy Regulator on a case-by-case basis. The regulator will have to be convinced, however, that it would put downward pressure on bills and be cheaper than renewables. That's a very high bar that will be set to ensure that household bills don't go up and it doesn't make it harder for other industries to do business.

However, the Northern Territory Chief Minister, when asked last week about potential savings on power bills from Beetaloo gas, said:

I would love to say yes, unfortunately, that's not going to be the case.

Well, there you go. From one jurisdiction— (Time expired)

Last night we saw on Four Corners that the Minister for Climate Change and Energy had the audacity to say, 'I never really bought into all the hype about green hydrogen.' I would suggest to the chamber that he was actually the salesman-in-chief. I would go back to April 2023, where Minister Bowen, the Minister for Climate Change and Energy, said:

Today's release of the annual State of Hydrogen report reinforces that Australia has the foundations to become a global leader in green hydrogen.

Then, six months later, in January 2024, he said:

Firstly, of course, our government wants Australia to be a hydrogen superpower, a green hydrogen superpower.

And then a year later, in March 2025, he said:

Hydrogen, green hydrogen, is really the only game in town when it comes to ultimately supporting the Australian and international industries as they move in the longer term to get off gas. And Australia is one of the few places in the world which can be home to a serious green hydrogen industry.

And he goes on—there are so many quotes that I could provide to the House.

The problem is that we now find we have the smelter in Whyalla closing. That was the big promise—that green hydrogen would be able to run that smelter. All of a sudden, what we have instead are 600 jobs gone. While Labor want to declare that they are the government for workers, I don't think losing 600 jobs is the way to be the government of workers. I don't think making bold promise after bold promise, based on ideology and creative thinking, is helping Australia at all. We are seeing more businesses closing and we are seeing fewer people have confidence in this government, and it's for a very good reason.

In my electorate alone, we have the renewable rollout under Labor federally and Labor state, and it is all turning to custard. The reason it's all turning to custard is that they don't bother actually checking in with the communities. There is no social licence for all of the renewable that is ploughing through prime agricultural land. That's a problem. That's a problem in my electorate. If Australia wants to know where farmers have risen up and formed a serious protest movement, it started in Mallee, and I am very proud of those farmers. They're there to farm. That's what they want to do. It is the most important thing to them. It has been the most important thing to their grandparents and their great-grandparents, and so I could go on.

Sixth- and seventh-generation farmers are now finding it so hard to farm under this government. It's not only the red tape, the green tape and all the biosecurity issues they now have to worry about. We've got carbon tax. We now have renewable energy rolling through their properties and forced acquisitions by the Victorian Labor government. But lo and behold, today we find that the Victorian Premier has made the announcement that the Western Renewables Link is going to go into 'pause mode' until after the election, because maybe they need to do a bit of an inquiry as to whether the funding for it actually stacks up. Well, I don't think it's going to take the Premier very long to find out that the communities don't think it stacks up, let alone the economics.

What we are seeing is Australia becoming not a superpower—not a superpower. We are losing industry, we are losing manufacturing, and we are losing farmers who are giving up their passion under this government. It is extraordinary to me that this Labor government is so blind to what they are doing to our nation. Well, I can tell you what, it might be 18 months until the next election, but Australia will not forget.

Last Sunday, in my community in West End at the Kurilpa Derby, I had many conversations about the future that people want for our community, and I'll give a big shout-out to Moira, who had a very long chat with me. What I heard, time and again, is that people in my community want ambitious climate action and a clean energy transition that lowers household bills. They also want renters to share in those savings. They expect their government to listen, lead and deliver. As the only progressive party in Australia that can form a government, we know we must lead that debate and also deliver environmental and energy policy. That responsibility belongs to Labor, and it is only Labor that rises to that challenge. Addressing climate change is a moral imperative, is an economic imperative and is what my community wants.

Earlier this month we heard some distressing news. For more than a decade the world has been working towards limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees. The United Nations Environment Programme has warned that we will very likely exceed that threshold within this decade. Avoiding an overshoot is no longer a realistic prospect. This is devastating news, particularly for our Pacific island neighbours facing rising seas and threats to their homes.

We cannot pretend that climate change isn't real. We cannot ignore it, and we cannot give up and say it is all too hard. Climate change is part of our lives. We must adapt and limit the worst of its effects. Every fraction of a degree we prevent reduces harm. Failing to seize the opportunities of a clean economy would work against Australia's national interests, particularly the interests of those that come after us.

I am proud to be part of a Labor government that is rising to that challenge. More than 44 per cent of homes in Griffith have solar panels. Our community is already helping build a cleaner electricity system. Complementing rooftop solar, home batteries let households store electricity generated during the day and use it after sunset when families are cooking dinner and switching on appliances. I was proud that our government announced the Cheaper Home Batteries Program, right in my community, last year—a program that reduces the cost of a typical battery around 30 per cent. Since 1 July last year, it has supported more than 500,000 battery installations for households, small businesses and community groups. Griffith has recorded 2,258 solar batteries, providing more than 68,000 kilowatt hours of usable storage. It's a shame that the member for Wannon has left because in his electorate they have installed 2,253 cheaper home batteries. He's just five short of mine—catching up!—but I've got no doubt that they will get there very soon. We have expanded that program to support an expected two million installations by 2030.

For renters, access to benefits requires government actions. A tenant can face high electricity bills without having any control over the roof above them. The Solar Sharer Offer gives eligible households the option of three hours of free electricity usage in the middle of the day. Our Community Solar Banks program has delivered solar installations for more than 5,200 apartments, with renters occupying almost half.

We are also investing more than $20 billion through Rewiring the Nation to modernise the grid. Another 15 large battery projects selected through our Capacity Investment Scheme are expected to attract around $6 billion in private investment. These projects will support more than 6,800 jobs across construction, operations and maintenance.

Australians are changing how they get around, too. Last month, battery electric vehicles outsold petrol vehicles for the first time, becoming the largest single fuel category in new vehicle sales—more than 27,000 sold in August—accounting for almost a quarter of the market. This is electrification in practice; more Australians are replacing petrol with electricity, reducing their reliance on fossil fuels and cutting their running costs.

It's a bit rich for those opposite to talk about failing energy policy. They spent years in government unable to settle on a lasting policy of their own—and then they came up with nuclear. Now the coalition is chasing One Nation and retreating further from the climate action that Australians need. Look at what One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts is saying. At a Senate hearing just this year, he claimed:

There is no data at all that shows there's a changing climate, only inherent natural variation in cycles.

He's promoted claims of a UN-inspired climate hoax and accused the Bureau of Meteorology of interfering with climate data.

Climate change isn't a debate; it is our reality. In my community of Griffith, people tell me every day they want action, not excuses. The Albanese Labor government is showing leadership, setting strong climate targets, investing in renewables and driving down emissions while creating local jobs. That's progress, not politics.

To any steelworkers from Whyalla who might have just been listening to that contribution, that was the member for Griffith. Where is Griffith? Griffith is an affluent inner-city electorate in Brisbane, along the Brisbane River—certainly no steelworkers, or very few, I would hasten to suggest. Unfortunately, what they would have heard was not what they wanted to hear. What they wanted to hear was the once proud Labor Party standing up for them, their industry and their jobs. Instead, what they heard was, 'You're just a casualty of the ideological war we're perpetrating on the Australian people.' That's what they heard—the once-proud Labor Party who stood up for workers now turns their back on workers. These may well be workers in regional South Australia—and that might not matter to you—but it matters to me. It's not in my electorate, but it's significant.

The other thing that matters to me is that—in a country where we export phenomenal amounts of coking coal, where we have available to us phenomenal amounts of coking coal and where we have iron ore exports that rival the rest of the world—we will no longer produce structural steel. We have flown the white flag on the capacity to build or create steel.

You have!

The member for McEwen says, 'You have.' I would never suggest, Madam Deputy Speaker, that in the chair you would do such a thing. But the truth is that those opposite have done this. And how have you done it? You've done it by pursuing this ideological renewables-only agenda, which has driven up the price of electricity.

During question time, we heard from those opposite seeking to blame the former owner of the steel mill, Mr Gupta, about his failure to undertake maintenance on the blast furnace. This was a situation where, quite frankly, in the state that experiences the highest electricity costs in Australia and in turn potentially the highest electricity costs in the world—and again, who do we have to blame for that? It's an agenda that is driven by those opposite, who want to drive up the cost of electricity not just for households but for businesses. We shouldn't be surprised—should we—that the businesses most likely to fail in that setting are those businesses that rely heavily on electricity and the cost of energy. Those really energy-intensive industries are going to fail first.

I can hear those opposite, like the member for McEwen, chattering. But my question to those opposite would be: do you think the world's going to use any less steel as a result of this decision? No. Those opposite need to understand—

Order! I want less interjections. I ask the member for Barker to direct his comments through the chair. You know well the standing order.

I seem to encourage interest from those opposite, and I'm pleased. Because—through you, Madam Deputy Speaker—I suggest to the House that, as a result of this really difficult decision that was delivered to 500 or 600 South Australian regional workers by the Premier of South Australia yesterday, there won't be any less structural steel utilised globally or indeed in Australia. But now it'll be produced in jurisdictions who care less about carbon emissions, who care less about workers' safety, who care less about workers and what workers are paid.

I want to live in an Australia that makes things. I want to live in an Australia where we don't have the working poor. As the brother of a dead worker who died on the job, I want to make sure people making things can do it safely, but unfortunately those opposite want to live in this utopia where unfortunately you can drive up the cost of energy but heavy industry survives in Australia. It isn't exposed to global competition. That's exactly what's happening. If you don't realise that what you're doing is exporting jobs to the rest of the world, then think again because that's what's happening here. We couldn't build this building today with Australian products, but we could in 1988.

For years, everyday Australians watched the other political parties in this place turn energy into a political battleground rather than a responsibility. One side spent a decade denying reality. The other confused protests with progress, slogans with solutions. They created outrage but instead of doing something about it turned that outrage into data harvesting personal information for their own political gain. In the middle are everyday families and businesses who just want affordable energy, reliable power and confidence that climate change is being taken seriously.

Australia's energy system was always going to change. Our coal-fired power stations are getting older. The question has never been whether the transition would happen. The question has been whether Australia would be prepared for it. For 10 years those opposite had the opportunity to prepare. What did they deliver? It was a promise of wholesale prices below $70 per megawatt hour but with a reality of prices above $280. It was 10 years in government, 10 years of climate wars and 10 years where more energy left the grid than was added. And now they stand in this parliament pretending they have discovered concern for household and industry.

The people I represent in Melbourne are not interested in revisiting the last 15 years. They want to know what happens next. How does Australia get competitive? How do manufacturers get the energy they need? How do households get relief from rising costs? How do we tackle climate change while creating good jobs? That is why, from day one, the Albanese government has focused on building—building renewable generation, building battery storage, building the industries of the future and building a modern energy system that can actually support Australia's future.

Since we first came to government, more than 22 gigawatts of renewable generation has been added to Australia's grid. Wind and solar capacity has increased by 60 per cent. That is enough new capacity to exceed five Snowy Hydro schemes. That's not proposed, not announced and not protested; it's built. Unlike those opposite, Labor understands that aspirations don't power homes; infrastructure does. Announcements don't keep industries open; investment does. Slogans don't lower bills; building things does. And delivering for the Australian people is exactly what this government is doing.

For households, we are helping Australians participate in the energy transition rather than simply paying pay for it. It's battery discounts, community batteries, solar sharing, social housing upgrades and consumer protections that stop energy retailers taking Australians for a ride. It's practical reforms that make a difference in people's lives. For industry, we are providing what businesses consistently tell government they need most. That is certainty—not another decade of arguments, not another decade of delays and not more protests, but certainty—through Rewiring the Nation, through the Capacity Investment Scheme, through Future Made in Australia and through investments that support manufacturing, clean industry and long-term economic growth.

That matters enormously for the people I represent in Melbourne, because in Australia we should not just consume the technologies of the future; we should build them. We should manufacture them. We should design them. Our city is home to world-class research institutions, advanced manufacturing, clean technology businesses and highly skilled workers. The economic opportunities that come with the clean energy transformation are not theoretical; they are real. The only question is whether Australia captures them or watches other countries do it first.

That is what is at stake in this debate. It's not just power bills; it's economic leadership, industrial capacity and future jobs. That is why Labor's approach is different. We reject the false choice that has dominated this debate for too long. We reject the idea that Australia must choose between climate action and economic growth. We reject the idea that delay is a strategy. And we reject the idea that saying 'no' is a substitute for governing. The Australian people deserve more than political theatre. They deserve more than culture wars. They deserve more than endless protests. They deserve real outcomes. When it comes to delivering those outcomes, there is only one party with a record and a plan, and that party is the Australian Labor Party.