Dr O'Donoghue was, without doubt, one of the most remarkable leaders this country has ever known. Many have spoken here about her childhood and the unimaginable disadvantages she endured, as have so many of our Indigenous sisters and brothers. She was removed, or stolen, from her mother and assigned a birth date. She endured so much that many of us have not. Even after a childhood of immense trauma, she dedicated her life to the advancement of reconciliation in Australia, and played a pivotal role in national initiatives that have had a profound effect on Indigenous Australians and, therefore, upon all of us.
Dr O'Donoghue was never one to shy away from a challenge, as many others have noted in this place. She was a woman of many firsts. She was the first Aboriginal nurse in South Australia. In 1973 she was the first woman to be appointed as a regional director of an Australian federal department, being the Department of Aboriginal Affairs. She was the founding chair of the National Aboriginal Conference in 1977. She was the first chair of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission in 1990, and she was the first Aboriginal person to address the United Nations General Assembly, in 1992.
She has, quite rightly, received many awards in recognition of her contribution to this country and to many others. In 1976, she was the first Aboriginal woman to be made a Member of the Order of Australia. In 1983, as was mentioned earlier, Dr O'Donoghue was named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for her services to the Indigenous community of Australia. The year after, she was acknowledged by the Prime Minister, Bob Hawke, as Australian of the Year. In 1993, Murdoch University was the first university to grant her an honorary doctorate. That was the first of many honorary doctorates. I believe she got another nine from universities right around the country in recognition of her vast contributions. In 1999 she was made a Companion in the Order of Australia for public service through leadership to Indigenous and, importantly, non-Indigenous Australians in the areas of human rights and social justice. I think it is very important that her Companion of the Order of Australia citation mentions her contribution to non-Indigenous Australians as well. Her honours continued. In 2006, she was invested as a Dame of the Order of Saint Gregory the Great, a papal honour awarded by then Pope John Paul II, which just goes to speak of how Dr O'Donoghue was regarded right around the world.
In the nineties, when Dr O'Donoghue was the chair of ATSIC, she worked alongside other prominent Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders and then prime minister Paul Keating to negotiate the terms of the Native Title Act following the Mabo decision. Keating would later recount the influence that Dr O'Donoghue had on delivering that act, saying:
… she decided, alone decided, that the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia would negotiate, and I emphasise negotiate, with the Commonwealth government of Australia—and that the negotiators would be the leaders of the indigenous land councils. She decided that. And from that moment, for the first time in the 204-year history of the settled country, its indigenous people sat in full concert with the government of it all.
The Native Title Act passed in 1993, and finally Indigenous Australians had a legal process to claim native title over the lands and waters that they had lived on for tens of thousands of years before colonisation—the eternity that existed before colonisation and, indeed, exists today. Today, around 40 per cent Australia is covered by native title, most of which is in our northern regions, and of course it has a great interaction with the resources sector of this country. Sixty per cent of resources projects are on land covered by native title. The member for Newcastle mentioned this in her contribution, but I think it's important to reiterate that today, in 2024, we should not underestimate how difficult it was to enact and then go on to implement the national Native Title Act. There was an extraordinary scare campaign around native title following the Mabo decision and then Paul Keating's progress with the bill and the act itself. Most of that was, sadly, driven out of my home state of Western Australia, which the leaders of that state at the time would have said had a lot to lose from native title. It was an enormous and frightening scare campaign which set the tone for many discussions since between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.
But the reality is that the Native Title Act and all that has come after it have been absolutely transformative for the resources sector but also, more importantly, for our wider community. Now we see an extensive array of voluntary land use agreements under the native title regime, and these agreements benefit Indigenous communities while also enabling responsible resources developments right across the country. These land use agreements and other agreements entered into between Indigenous communities and resources companies have the deep involvement of local communities—and not just Indigenous communities, I might add. Some of the neighbouring communities have benefited greatly from the consequences of the Native Title Act development over the years. There has been active involvement by communities in mine development, planning, rehabilitation, and all the extraordinary activity that goes on within the resources sector. We know the work Dr O'Donoghue did, alongside Paul Keating and many, many others, in developing that act has had enormous benefit for Indigenous populations and, more importantly, for the wider community.
We know that Dr O'Donoghue was a strong advocate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to be recognised in Australia's Constitution. Sadly, Dr O'Donoghue did not get to see that constitutional recognition in her lifetime, but I know we can all agree here today that Australia is a better place because of her and her extraordinary contribution to this country. Even after her passing, her legacy will live on through the lives of those she has changed forever. My condolences to her family and friends. Vale Dr Lowitja O'Donoghue. May you rest in peace.
]]>This this bill be now read a second time.
Throughout our history, Australia's prosperity has been closely tied to the success of our resources sector.
The contribution of the resources sector to Australia's national prosperity is significant, and it continues to play an essential and irreplaceable role supporting our economic wellbeing today.
The Australian Government will always support a strong and resilient resources sector, and in supporting the sector we have a responsibility to ensure the ongoing health and safety of its workers.
Nothing is more important than ensuring that every worker can come home safely at the end of a shift, or at the conclusion of a lengthy swing away from family and friends to the comfort of their homes.
It is therefore incumbent on Governments to review and update our rules and regulations governing resources sector safety to ensure those rules and regulations remain fit-for-purpose.
The Bill I am introducing to the Parliament today achieves this objective.
Improving offshore safety
This Bill proposes amendments to the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 to improve safety outcomes for Australia's offshore resources sector workforce.
The Bill implements outcomes of a review of the offshore safety regime for offshore resources sector workers which was undertaken by the Department of Industry, Science and Resources between 2019 and 2021. This review recommended several improvements to ensure that Australia's offshore resources safety regime continues to provide an effective, leading best practice framework for ensuring the health and safety of the offshore resources sector workforce.
The Department of Industry, Science and Resources identified several additional measures to further strengthen Australia's offshore safety regime, which include improvements to operational health and safety, workforce health and wellbeing, and effective administration of the regime by the regulator.
The Department of Industry, Science and Resources worked closely with stakeholders throughout the review process and during subsequent policy analysis. A representative group comprising employers, the workforce, unions and state and territory governments were consulted extensively throughout the review. A public consultation process was also undertaken.
This bill will implement the outcomes of the safety review, with additional reforms implemented by subsequent amendments to the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Safety Regulations 2009 to be finalised following the passage of this bill.
The key safety measures in this bill will:
The reforms proposed in this bill will improve safety outcomes for Australia's offshore resources sector workforce. Several of the measures included in the bill will also drive greater alignment between Australia's offshore petroleum safety regime and the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and its regulations.
Several measures identified in the safety review will be implemented in regulation following passage of the bill. Some of these measures will be implemented through revisions to existing provisions, such as strengthening reporting obligations around sexual harassment, while others create new provisions.
The regulations are supported by existing powers in the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006. Where this is not the case, the bill inserts new regulation-making powers in the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006. The government will consult on development of these regulations before they are made.
Improving jurisdictional interface in Australia's offshore areas
To further enhance safety outcomes in Australia's offshore resources industry, the bill introduces amendments to clarify the validity of certificates issued under the Navigation Act 2012 to provide greater regulatory certainty for disconnectable facilities.
The proposed amendments will apply certain aspects of Commonwealth maritime legislation to disconnectable facilities that, from time to time, may need to disconnect to navigate away from cyclones or to undertake maintenance. These amendments will ensure that vessel safety certificates remain valid when a disconnectable facility transitions between the maritime and offshore petroleum regime, and this will improve safety outcomes.
Enhancing offshore regulatory frameworks
It is essential that the environmental management regulatory framework for offshore petroleum and greenhouse gas storage activities remains fit for purpose. In addition to enhancing safety outcomes for Australia's offshore resources sector workforce, this bill introduces amendments to enable changes to be made to the environment regulations under the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006while maintaining the validity of streamlined arrangements endorsed under section 146B of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.
In February 2014 the federal Minister for the Environment endorsed the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority's regulatory processes as a program that meets the requirements of part 10 of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. Subsequently, the minister also approved a class of actions which, if undertaken in accordance with the endorsed program, will not require separate referral, assessment and approval under the EPBC Act 1999. The endorsed program reflects the offshore environmental regulations under the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 that were in place at that time. However, the program cannot be amended to reflect changes to strengthen and improve those regulations over time.
The amendments proposed in this bill will enable changes to be made to the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage (Environment) Regulations 2023while ensuring that those changes do not impact the application of streamlined approval arrangements already in place under section 146B of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.
The Australian government is reviewing the offshore environmental management framework for petroleum and greenhouse gas activities to ensure the regime is fit-for-purpose and is appropriately designed to enable our economy to decarbonise over time. The amendments proposed in this bill will support implementation of the outcomes of this review.
Minor and technical amendments
The bill proposes additional minor and technical amendments to ensure the ongoing effective operation of the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006.
The amendments will:
The bill, together with regulation changes in response to the safety review, will further strengthen the occupational health and safety outcomes for the offshore resources industry and make improvements to the operation of the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006. The bill represents the government's ongoing commitment to improve occupational health and safety outcomes for Australia's offshore resources sector workforce.
I commend the bill to the chamber.
Debate adjourned.
]]>Bill read a first time.
]]>From coal country in the Hunter to the iron ore mines in the Pilbara, there are trades assistants, haul truck drivers, diesel mechanics, heritage advisers, cleaners and cooks and they all earn between $75,000 and $95,000 a year. Each of them will get a tax cut of between $1,500 and $2,000 a year. All of these resources workers, and many more, will receive bigger tax cuts under Labor's cost-of-living tax cut plans.
Those opposite don't really want to talk about the average resources workers, their rights, their conditions or their well deserved tax cuts. They don't really want to talk about the truck drivers, the mechanics, the cooks and the cleaners that make our mines run and keep the economy humming. I mean, they might like to jump in a private charter and go to a party in the Pilbara or maybe even Bali. Good on them. That's really top stuff, I suppose. But what we care about are the workers in the resources industry that will get a tax cut. Every single one of them will get a tax cut, and it will be bigger than they might have expected before.
Then, when I go to northern Australia, every person living in northern Australia will receive a bigger tax cut. They have received an average income of $70,000 across northern Australia, and everyone earning that average will get an average tax cut of $1,400.
Only Labor supports all the communities across northern Australia. We don't pick and choose who we support. This will be extra money in people's pockets—people who are doing it tough in northern Australia, where it is tough. There are more expensive items, a lack of competition and transport issues which all add up to making the cost of living even more challenging for those in northern Australia compared to the big cities. Labor's cost-of-living tax cuts will help everyone in northern Australia and every single worker in the resources sector.
]]>The government will always support a strong and resilient resources sector, but, in supporting this sector, we also have a responsibility to future generations to ensure that industry rehabilitates the natural environment once a project reaches the end of its productive life. For Australia's maturing offshore oil and gas industry, this means spending approximately $16 billion to remove, dismantle, scrap and recycle ageing offshore infrastructure. While this is an extraordinary task for the offshore resources industry, it is also an extraordinary economic opportunity for Australia. With the right policies and regulatory settings, and by harnessing the expertise of our existing offshore resources workforce, we can capture this economic opportunity and build a vibrant maritime decommissioning economy.
Decommissioning, in basic terms, involves removing and dismantling oil and gas infrastructure permanently, securely plugging disused wells and rehabilitating the surrounding seabed. The removal of all offshore oil and gas property once it is no longer in use is the default decommissioning requirement under Australian law. Alternatives to full removal of infrastructure may be considered where that approach delivers equal or better environmental outcomes. Australian law obligates the oil and gas industry to pay all costs associated with decommissioning offshore oil and gas infrastructure, and the Australian community expects nothing less. Decommissioning expenditure will ramp up in the decades ahead, as a number of offshore oil and gas projects in Victoria, Western Australia and the Northern Territory come to the end of their productive life.
The government's objective is clear: as industry starts investing to decommission $60 billion of offshore infrastructure, we want as much of that investment as possible to be spent backing Australian industry and Australian jobs. But, more than that, we want to build an enduring decommissioning industry that is equipped not just to service ageing oil and gas assets in Australia and our region but also to capture a solid pipeline of activity to meet future decommissioning demand for new industries, like offshore wind. We are thinking that far ahead. Australian hands have built a multibillion dollar offshore resources industry from the ground up. We want to harness their expertise and deploy their know-how to build a vibrant domestic maritime decommissioning economy.
As many in this place will recall, in February 2020 the then Australian government stepped in to take responsibility for the Northern Endeavour, a 274 metre-long floating production storage and offtake facility. The government was forced to take responsibility for the Northern Endeavour because the owners of the vessel entered into administration, defaulting on their decommissioning obligations. The Northern Endeavour illustrated that inadequate maintenance, regulatory gaps and poor planning pose a significant risk to the safe management of aging oil and gas infrastructure in this country. Such gross mismanagement also had the potential to cause an environmental disaster. We aren't alone in this. Other countries, like the UK, New Zealand and the US, are facing similar challenges. Today I'm glad to update the House that the Northern Endeavour decommissioning program continues to progress. We are taking a deliberate, responsible and diligent approach to a project that is technically complex and extraordinarily difficult. This difficulty was underscored just yesterday when the contractor aboard the Northern Endeavour temporarily suspended the sub-sea flushing campaign currently underway, due to unforeseen technical issues.
Safety will always come first. This work cannot be rushed, and it must be done properly. Doing so sends a strong signal that Australia remains a responsible country for safe and sustainable offshore development. Phase 1 of the Northern Endeavour decommissioning program commenced last year and is focused on making the vessel safe and disconnecting the vessel from its surrounding oilfields. Work is now underway to prepare for the next stage of the program, which involves the plugging of existing oil wells and the removal of infrastructure on the seabed. The government is also preparing a disposal strategy for the physical Northern Endeavour vessel, which will include all necessary measures to protect the environment during disconnection, towing and dismantling. In working to decommission the Northern Endeavour, the Australian government's first priority has always been the safety of workers undertaking this difficult task. Nothing is more important than the safety and security of the Australians working offshore, many of whom operate in some of the most dangerous workplace conditions anywhere in this country.
The decommissioning of the Northern Endeavour is an expensive undertaking and not something the federal government should have to do. In 2022, the parliament legislated a levy on the offshore oil and gas industry to pay for the decommissioning of the Northern Endeavour. The Australian government remains committed to ensuring that taxpayers are not left to pick up the cost of industry's decommissioning obligations. The levy was a bipartisan effort, and I thank the former minister, the member for Hinkler, for his sustained engagement with Labor to progress that important piece of legislation. I also thank Adrian Evans, Penny Howard and others from the Maritime Union of Australia for their constructive engagement with Labor as parliament legislated the levy and for their longstanding advocacy for the establishment of a decommissioning industry in Australia.
While the process of decommissioning the Northern Endeavour is complex and difficult, we have learnt some important lessons that have translated into stronger and more resilient regulations. In 2021 parliament passed reforms with bipartisan support that prevented companies from selling off aging oil and gas assets unless the Commonwealth can be assured that the new owners of those assets have the capacity to meet their decommissioning liabilities. These reforms helped to clamp done on a practice that allowed big oil and gas companies to sell off aging assets to junior resources companies who may not have had the financial capacity to fund a decommissioning program. The parliament also expanded the circumstances in which a former title holder could be held responsible for decommissioning costs, even if they had already sold off an asset to a separate company that was unwilling or unable to pay. The Australian government is now considering how we can strengthen the existing financial assurance regime for offshore oil and gas title holders to better insulate taxpayers against future decommissioning liabilities. Over time, we want to improve the government's ability to monitor and assess the financial mechanisms that the offshore resources industry has in place to pay for future decommissioning activity.
It is important to ensure that the offshore resources industry continues to meet its obligations to responsibly and safely decommission offshore projects. The decommissioning of the Northern Endeavour has provided valuable insights into what a future offshore decommissioning industry in Australia could look like. We have the expertise, the capacity and the willingness to decommission large offshore oil and gas infrastructure in this country, and that is why I'm working with Australia's offshore industries, the offshore workforce, state and territory governments and my ministerial colleagues to develop a road map for a future Australian offshore decommissioning industry. The road map will examine how we can capture the significant economic opportunity in the years and decades ahead. It will examine infrastructure requirements, explore regulatory best practice and map the services that we will need to help underpin such an industry in this country.
The road map will identify opportunities to create high-paying, high-skilled jobs in the regions, supporting the transition of our existing offshore workforce. The road map will explore how our decommissioning industry can provide services to adjacent industries like offshore wind, and it will identify opportunities to export our expertise across the Asia-Pacific. The road map will also explore how such an industry could facilitate onshore reuse and recycling opportunities. Norway and the United Kingdom see up to 97 per cent of the steel from offshore projects recycled and reused in things like offshore wind turbines. So rather than strip down old steel and export it as scrap, there is an opportunity to reuse and recycle the steel from offshore oil and gas infrastructure onshore.
In addition, the road map will look at different ways to build opportunities for First Nations people and businesses as well as boosting the participation of women in offshore industries. To support the development of the road map, the Australian government is launching an issues paper today and will shortly commence public consultations. With the right settings in place, Australia is well placed to scale up a viable domestic offshore decommissioning industry in this country. We can do it here, we should do it here and we can export our expertise to our region. I thank the House.
]]>In the last budget, the government invested $12 million for a comprehensive review of Australia's offshore oil and gas environmental regulations, with a particular focus on consultation outcomes, including for First Nations people. We want to ensure better consultation with First Nations peoples. We want to make that a feature of the regulatory system, and we are working solidly toward that outcome. We know that there has been a distressing lack of genuine consultation and collaboration with First Nations Australians for more than two centuries in this country, and we aim to fix that.
]]>The vast majority of Australia's radioactive waste is from nuclear medicine, which every Australian is likely to benefit from in their lifetime. It is also produced in the development of industrial and agricultural technologies in undertaking lifesaving scientific research. Anyone in this place who knows someone who has needed cancer treatment can understand why this material exists and the need to store these materials safely.
According to the most recent national inventory, conducted in 2021, Australia has 13,287 cubic metres of low-level radioactive waste, which, by volume, is more than five standard Olympic swimming pools, and 4,377 cubic metres of intermediate-level radioactive waste, which equates to just under two standard Olympic swimming pools. Currently, radioactive waste is stored in over 100 locations nationwide, including hospitals, scientific facilities and universities. Australia's radioactive waste will grow into the future. While safe, these facilities are not purpose built and long-term management of Australia's waste at these locations is unsustainable.
The site of Australia's only nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights can safely store waste on site for some time, but we must ensure this waste has an appropriate disposal pathway. The Labor Party, National Party and Liberal Party have recognised, through successive terms of government, that responsibly managing this waste is imperative for the nation. There has been bipartisan support for the responsible management of this waste.
The current site-selection process has been in train for seven years. In November 2021, the former minister for resources, the member for Hinkler, declared the former farming property known as Napandee, near the town of Kimba, in South Australia, as the proposed site for the facility. This followed a number of years of consultation through various processes. Despite the genuine efforts of the Australian Radioactive Waste Agency and others, many feel they weren't adequately consulted. The traditional owners, the Barngarla people, have for many years pointed to deficiencies in the consultation process. Other landowners and farmers near the proposed site but not in the district of Kimba have made clear their concerns regarding the proposed site and their frustrations at not being included in those earlier consultations.
The Barngarla people exercised their right to seek judicial review of the former minister's declaration of the Napandee site under the National Radioactive Waste Management Act 2012. On 18 July 2023, Justice Charlesworth of the Federal Court set aside the declaration that was made in November 2021. Some comments have been made in this place about the reason for Her Honour's decision. It has been said, quite incorrectly, that the decision to set aside the site declaration relates to the operation of native title. While the judgement does reflect briefly on native title law, this in no way was the basis of the decision of the Federal Court last month.
The question raised in this case was about a decision-making process, not a claim of native title. The Federal Court's decision in no way impacts on existing law regarding when and in what circumstances landowners are required to consult with traditional owners. To suggest that it does is misleading. The Barngarla were able to bring this case to court because of their interest in the decision-making process. Any other person or group could have done the same thing and could have reached the same result.
Rather, the site declaration was set aside because the court found apprehended bias present in the decision of the then minister. This is founded on certain statements made by the former minister relating to the site in question. I want to be very clear that the Federal Court did not find any actual bias demonstrated by the decision-maker, but Her Honour concluded that apprehended bias was sufficiently present to order that the site declaration be set aside. Some matters do remain before the courts, and I will not pre-empt the remaining judicial processes.
Today I want to make clear with regard to the principal matter that I do not intend to appeal the judge's findings of apprehended bias. I have reached an agreement with the Barngarla Determination Aboriginal Corporation on costs, and I hope that we will also come to an agreed approach to orders relating to the date of application of the judge's decision in coming days for the court's consideration in due course. The judgement was clear, and the government is listening.
I visited Kimba in January of this year and saw for myself what was in my opinion—and not everyone agrees with this—a town divided. I met residents supportive of Kimba hosting the facility and those that were not. There are many people in Kimba who support hosting this facility and I want to acknowledge their efforts over many years to diversify their local economy.
I met with the traditional owners, the Barngarla people, who are no longer residents of Kimba but clearly have a deep connection to their ancestral country after being driven off it many years ago. We have said all along that the national radioactive waste facility requires broad community support—broad community support which includes the whole community, including the traditional owners of the land. This is clearly not the case at Kimba.
The previous government sought to temporarily store intermediate-level radioactive waste on agricultural land and contemplated the double handling of the transport of this waste, first from Lucas Heights in New South Wales to temporary storage in South Australia, and then on to an undetermined permanent disposal site. This approach has raised concerns regarding international best practice and safety standards. Therefore, the Albanese Labor government does not intend to pursue Napandee as a potential site for the facility, nor is the government pursuing the previously shortlisted Lyndhurst and Wallerberdina sites.
I can confirm that site characterisation activities taking place at and around the site near Kimba have ceased. Any activities that have already been conducted were non-permanent and will be reversed or remediated. The site is currently being supervised to ensure it remains safe and cultural heritage is protected while we work through dispossession of the land. The government intends to honour existing contracts for community benefit program round 3 grants. My department has begun work on alternative proposals for the storage and disposal of the Commonwealth's civilian low-level and intermediate-level radioactive waste.
I am deeply sorry for the uncertainty this process has created for the Kimba community, for my own department, for the Australian Radioactive Waste Agency workers, and for the workers involved in the project at Napandee. I also acknowledge the profound distress this process has caused the Barngarla people, and I am sorry for that too. But we have to get this right. This is long-lasting, multigenerational government policy for the disposal of waste that can take thousands of years to decay.
This government remains committed to the Australian Radioactive Waste Agency and its goal of safely storing and disposing of radioactive waste. We must consult widely and bring stakeholders, including First Nations people, along with us. We remain bipartisan in our approach and willing to work with those opposite and across the parliament on a resolution in the national interest. This is not where we wanted to be, but we have to start from where we are. This government is determined to get this right.
]]>I was really pleased to see at that opening the Premier of Western Australia, Roger Cook; former premier Mark McGowan; and the then candidate for Rockingham Magenta Marshall. I'm really pleased to report that Magenta Marshall has since been elected as the new member for Rockingham, after successfully securing the seat at the Rockingham by-election on 29 July. Magenta was an outstanding local candidate and ran a fantastic campaign, with her team knocking on almost 10,000 household doors and making more than 6,000 calls for the by-election. I've known Magenta for quite some time now. I know that she will work day in and day out for the great people of Rockingham. Like me, Magenta was born and raised in the community she now represents. I'm looking forward to working alongside her as the new local state MP for where I live and in the Cook Labor government, which will continue to deliver for the people of Rockingham.
Not only was the 29 July result a big win for WA Labor in Rockingham but also it was a massive rout for the Liberal Party of WA. Obtaining a dismal 17.68 per cent of the primary vote, the Liberal Party suffered their second-worst primary vote in my hometown since the seat's inception in 1976. They only did worse with the absolutely astounding performance of a nine per cent primary vote in 2021. The WA Libs didn't even come in second place. They didn't even scramble to second place in the Rockingham by-election. It was a damning indictment of the WA Liberals and the so-called clan faction that runs the party in the west. Will the WA Liberals ever learn that Western Australians will not put up with the nonsense the WA Liberals are going through?
This by-election came after the resignation of the former Premier and member for Rockingham, Mark McGowan. On behalf of the people of Brand and also the people of Rockingham, I thank Mark for his service over 30 years to the local electorate and to the wider community of Western Australia. He has steered us through some very difficult times. I want to wish Mark and his family, who have served alongside him, all the best for the future. I look forward to seeing him at the Mike Barnett Sports Complex, which is named after the member for Rockingham before Mark. It's an important tradition in the town to support the local, much loved basketball club the Rockingham Flames, and I congratulate the Cook Labor government on supporting them with a $10 million upgrade for one of the most popular sports in the state. Flame on!
]]>As many people here would be aware, thousands of millions of years of geological activity has made Australia an offer we cannot refuse. It has provided us with the minerals and the metals needed to secure the earth's future and our own. Our critical minerals are essential for net zero technology, including electric vehicles, wind turbines, battery storage and, of course, everyday products that we use all the time, including mobile devices, laptops and other things. As I have said before, the road to net zero runs through the Australian resources sector. To get to net zero, we will need more mining, not less.
The International Energy Agency recently predicted that under a net zero emissions scenario by 2050, global demand for critical minerals will increase over the next seven years by 350 per cent. That is an extraordinary level of growth, and Australia has the natural resources that will enable us as a nation to respond to this international demand. We are the world's largest producers of lithium, the third-largest producer of cobalt and the fourth-largest producer of rare earth elements. This represents an unmissable opportunity for our nation—one that this government will not miss.
To highlight the current demand for critical minerals, I'd like to give a shout out to the annual Diggers and Dealers Mining Forum taking place right now in the Goldfields town of Kalgoorlie in my home state of WA. For over 30 years, Diggers & Dealers has traditionally been a conference of goldminers. However, for the first time in its history, Diggers & Dealers now has a larger official representation from battery minerals and metals companies than from goldminers, as the industry seeks to support that global push for a decarbonised economy. The push for this onshore processing is part of the drive that increased their presence at Diggers & Dealers.
Through this Labor government's $1 billion Value-Adding in Resources Fund, part of the broader $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund, the Albanese government will ensure a greater share of our raw materials is processed right here in Australia. We will support those businesses in these industries to secure capital, allowing them to expand their workforce, create more complex jobs, and bring manufacturing capability, refining capability and, all importantly, chemical processing back into our country. The critical minerals story of Australia will be one of expanded mining operations and, very importantly, that high-level chemical processing. We will use our own resources to do it. We mined it here; we should make it here. The Labor government will make sure that happens.
]]>As many in this chamber know and as has been referenced before by the Prime Minister and the minister for infrastructure, in May 2020 Australian barley producers copped an 80.5 per cent tariff when exporting barley to China. That has led to an almost $1 billion a year loss to those grain growers around Australia because the duties effectively blocked the export of that barley to the Chinese market. That is why the news that came out last week that the Chinese government will no longer be imposing these duties on Australian barley is so welcomed by the industry and of course by all Australians. There are presently 126 exporters registered to supply barley to China, who will again have access to the significant market after three long years. This is also great news for Chinese consumers, who will now be able to enjoy better beer brewed using great Australian barley—the best barley in the world, as the Prime Minister has commented.
Since being elected, the Albanese Labor government has been working constructively with the Chinese government to address a range of trade related matters which arose during a long period of diplomatic silence overseen by those opposite. As part of this constructive approach, in April China initiated a fast-track review of the barley industry following agreement between our two nations to suspend the WTO dispute on barley. Now, following Friday's announcement and consistent with the terms of that agreement with China, Australia will discontinue that WTO dispute. This is a great outcome, which demonstrates the approach adopted by the foreign minister and the trade minister of engaging in sensible dialogue and negotiation, which is delivering timely results for Australian industry. The reality is that, if we had pursued this dispute through the World Trade Organization, barley producers would not have had a resolution for at least another 12 months, and that is entirely unacceptable for a $1 billion a year industry.
We know growers were devastated by these tariffs. At the time, barley was one of the top 3 agricultural exports in the country. Other markets were pursued, such as Mexico, because, of course, they brew some good beer over there too, but none could match the geographical proximity of the Chinese market for barley nor the population. This decision has been celebrated by stakeholders. I want to acknowledge the support of National Farmers Federation Chief Executive, Tony Mahar, who said:
We acknowledge the hard work by the Albanese Government to stabilise our relationship with China—in particular Minister Watt, Minister Wong and Minister Farrell who have engaged constructively with their counterparts on this issue.
We have an exceptional Senate team leading for Australia. (Time expired)
]]>While studying law and economics, he started his career with the union movement, working as a part-time researcher with the former Federated Storemen and Packers Union, now known as the National Union of Workers. By 1979, he had become general secretary of the union. Simon achieved extraordinary things during his life in the union, most notably leading a successful campaign for better working conditions for workers who performed heavy manual labour. As Vice-President of the ACTU, Simon played a crucial role in bringing about the Hawke government's accord between unions and employers in 1983. The accord, as we all know, was an extraordinary success, leading to industrial disputes dropping dramatically and employment growing strongly. Simon Crean would go on to become President of the ACTU from 1985 to 1990, and in 1990 he was elected as the Labor MP for the seat of Hotham, which started an extraordinary 23-year career in federal politics.
His time in parliament saw him rise to become the leader of the federal Labor Party, and he served as a cabinet minister in the Hawke, Keating, Rudd and Gillard governments. When he first came to parliament, Simon immediately entered the Hawke ministry as Minister for Science and Technology and Minister Assisting the Treasurer. He would hold the portfolios of primary industries and energy and employment, education and training under the Hawke and Keating governments before leading the federal Labor Party from 2001 to 2003.
As leader of the Labor Party, Simon showed incredible courage in opposing the deployment of Australian soldiers to Iraq. Though he opposed the deployment, he made very clear at the time that he had the deepest respect for Australia's military and would take every opportunity to address ADF personnel when they were deployed. In farewelling the service women and men from the HMAS Kanimbla, which was deploying to the Persian Gulf from HMAS Stirling in my electorate of Brand, Simon said:
My argument is not with you but with the Government.
Following the 2007 election, Simon returned to cabinet as Minister for Trade, where he played a key role in negotiating several international trade agreements, including the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand free trade agreement and Australia-Chile Free Trade Agreement. He also commenced the free trade negotiations with China, Korea, Japan and our near neighbour Indonesia. He would go on to become minister for employment, workplace relations, social inclusion, regional Australia, regional development and local government before his retirement from parliament in 2013.
Even after his political career, Mr Crean continued to promote free trade as a pathway to economic prosperity as chair of the European Australian Business Council and chair of the Australia-Korea Business Council. I entered parliament after Simon retired, but I had the pleasure of engaging with him extensively in my role as shadow minister for trade. I was struck by his warmth, intelligence and generosity and saw firsthand his dedication to our country and his deep understanding of the importance and benefits of international trade and, critically, how the benefits from that trade must flow to the wider community. He will be missed by the European Australian Business Council; the advocacy he did for the Australian-European Union Free Trade Agreement is the stuff of legends.
Simon left a remarkable legacy. His entire adult life was committed to helping improve the lives of Australia's workers and for the benefit of the nation. He was a lion of the labour movement and he will be sorely missed. Many MPs here in this place knew him much better than I did, and I extend my condolences to them and, of course, his many friends. I also want to extend my most sincere condolences to his wife, Carole, and to his whole family. The loss of a loved one so suddenly is heartbreaking. Nothing can take that heartbreak away. Only happy memories make the pain bearable, and I trust his family and friends will continue to think of those happy memories and remarkable legacy for a long time to come.
]]>Australian resource projects and our world-class universities are increasingly at the leading edge globally in their plans to deploy commercial-scale CCUS technologies. Despite what many may think and have said, CCUS is in fact a proven technology. Indeed, eight million tonnes of CO2 has been stored off Barrow Island on the Western Australian coast and more will be stored into the future. I fail to see how taking eight million tonnes of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere is a bad thing, as some people like to portray it.
Just last week, the Western Australian minister for resources, Bill Johnston, and I attended a symposium at Curtin University that provided many insights into some of the novel CCUS research being led out of Australian universities. We heard from Curtin PhD students Theo Alogalis, who is a young man from France, and Egi Adrian Pratama, from Indonesia, who, alongside their colleagues, are pursuing some truly groundbreaking work on microbubble carbon capture and storage technology. It was heartening to see some of our brightest minds working to advance CCUS research in this country.
It was also clear from the symposium that Japanese industry, including Tokyo Gas, Mitsui, MIMI, JERA and Osaka Gas, are firmly backing this groundbreaking research and see a strong future for CCUS in Australia. Of course, Japan have a goal of net zero emissions by 2050 and they will depend on partnerships to be able to make that happen for their community and for the benefit of all of us.
To put Australian CCUS projects in a competitive position and to back in our research efforts and unlock more private sector capital, it is imperative that we invest in our regulatory frameworks to ensure that they are fit for purpose. In the last federal budget the government invested $12 million to review and modernise our offshore environmental and carbon capture and storage regulations. This timely review will help to provide regulatory and administrative certainty for projects looking to sequester carbon dioxide in Australia's offshore areas. The government's efforts to create regulatory and administrative certainty extend to ratifying our international obligations under the London protocol, and that is the ratification enabled by this bill today.
In 2009 Australia agreed an amendment to the London protocol that enables the safe export of carbon dioxide for storage in geological formations under the seabed. In 2013 another London protocol amendment, which allows for the regulation of material placed into the seabed for legitimate scientific research into marine geoengineering, was also agreed. Importantly, ratification of the 2009 amendment will help to create a commercial pathway for transboundary CCUS projects, potentially including the Bayu-Undan gas field. Revenue from the Bayu-Undan gas field, located in the Timor Sea about 500 kilometres north of Darwin, has been a major contributor to the economy of Timor-Leste over 16 years, but the Bayu-Undan reservoir is now depleted of that resource.
As a reservoir that safely held gas for millennia, it is eminently suitable to return to that role and hold gas, this time CO2, for further millennia.
This government will always be a strong supporter of Timor-Leste's economic independence and resilience. It is therefore essential that our regulatory settings enable consideration of a commercial pathway for CCUS in the Bayu-Undan field. In ratifying the 2009 amendment we join the United Kingdom, Norway, the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden, the Republic of Korea, Denmark and many others who have already acted to enshrine this amendment in law. I thank the Minister for the Environment and Water for her carriage of this very important bill. I also want to acknowledge the work of the House Standing Committee on Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water—and particularly the chair of that committee, the member for Makin—which recommended that the government ratify these amendments to the London protocol. I also thank Senator Grogan and the Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee for similarly recommending that the government pass this bill. On that note, I commend this bill to the House.
]]>Today we stand on the cusp of the creation of a new resources industry. This industry offers not only economic prosperity but solutions to the challenge of our age: the fight against climate change. It is imperative that we get this right and that we get the policy settings right for the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. According to the International Energy Agency, the world's total demand for the minerals necessary for the development of clean-energy technologies is forecast to double or even quadruple by 2040. By 2030 electric vehicles will represent more than 60 per cent of vehicles sold globally. Demand for battery minerals such as lithium is forecast to increase by 40 times on 2020 levels by 2040, while demand for cobalt and graphite will rise by approximately 20 times and demand for rare earth elements could increase by seven times over the next 20 years. More mining is required to meet this demand. Recent analysis by the IEA suggests the world will need around 50 new lithium mines, 60 new nickel mines and 70 new cobalt mines to meet carbon emission goals by 2030. These statistics take on extra weight when we consider that supply chains for much of these minerals are currently heavily concentrated. This is particularly concerning for countries that do not possess such minerals and are reliant on international partners.
The extraordinary geology of our unique island nation gives Australia its remarkable endowment of the minerals required for the world to reach net zero and for the broader energy transition. The materials needed to build the world's batteries, wind farms and solar panels all lie beneath the surface of this continent. We are the world's largest producer of lithium, the third-largest producer of cobalt and fourth-largest producer of rare earth elements. There is much more to do to capitalise on the unique opportunity provided by net zero and the bounty of our critical minerals endowment. Our trade and investment partners are increasingly looking to Australia to provide critical minerals that will feed diversified global supply chains in the energy transition.
We are also working with international partners to help projects link to emerging markets in countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Korea, India and the European Union and its member states. The world is waking up to the opportunities here. The world understands that the building blocks of the technology that we need to fight climate change are here. It seems barely a week passes that we don't receive an approach from a foreign partner to discuss opportunities to develop Australia's critical minerals and rare earth element projects. We must look to grow our downstream capabilities in areas of competitive advantage by enabling more processing and refining of minerals onshore in Australia and realise the benefits derived from adding value to our resources.
This is already happening. Earlier this year, for example, the US company Albemarle said it would spend more than $2 billion to build two extra processing trains at its Kemerton site south of Perth to double its production of lithium hydroxide, that essential component of lithium batteries.
The Albanese Labor government's new critical minerals strategy sets out a pathway for Australia. It is a long-term framework to guide policy direction and government consideration. It is not a shopping list of items. While we prosper from our wealth of resources, Australia cannot outspend economies significantly larger than our own. I understand that some have become accustomed to a different load of policymaking, where financial support has been given primacy over strategy and planning. Financial investment by governments to support strategic projects where the market cannot is, of course, very important, and it can indeed be critical. But it is wise to establish what strategic investment looks like with the benefit of a well thought out, considered an inclusive strategy.
This is what I have done. We are laying a foundation for how the government will support our critical minerals sector and ensure it gets access to the kind of domestic and foreign capital it needs and the benefits it will deliver for all Australians. The strategy will help to create diverse, resilient and sustainable supply chains; build our sovereign capability in critical minerals processing; extract more value from our resources, resulting in more jobs and economic activity for our regions; and help deliver net zero by 2050.
The strategy highlights six focus areas, including developing strategically important projects, attracting investment and building international partnerships, growing First Nations engagement and benefit sharing, promoting Australia as a world leader in environmental and social governance, unlocking investment in enabling infrastructure and services, and growing a skilled workforce.
I am pleased to see Australian industry support the strategy I released this week. The Minerals Council of Australia has described the strategy as 'a leap forward, providing a coherent framework for integrated already well developed policy areas'. The Association of Mining and Exploration Company has said the strategy provides 'an enduring framework to build and shape Australia's critical minerals industry into the future'. US based chemicals manufacturing company Albemarle and Australian rare earth company Iluka have also welcomed the release of the strategy.
The Future Battery Industries Cooperative Research Centre has said the strategy will 'push Australia forward, and the government's targeted, concerted and proportionate approach will amplify the investments already made by the Australian government, private industry and the research community'. The Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia says the strategy provides 'a way forward for the future'. The Albanese Labor government welcomes this support, but we have much more to do, and this strategy will inform future budgetary decisions.
The recent critical minerals compact between Australia and the United States offers the possibility for close engagement with the US. The compact is a positive step forward, and our bilateral work with the US will build reliable and sustainable clean energy supply chains. Through the signed statement of intent, Prime Minister Albanese and President Biden directed both governments to report back on the progress of the compact by the end of 2023. As part of that compact, I will spearhead a task force on critical minerals, working closely with the US National Security Council. The task force will work with industry leaders to develop and expand reliable, responsible and secure global access to critical minerals, strengthening global supply of those critical minerals. I'm working with my counterparts to agree next steps in the coming weeks, and agreed actions will be communicated and announced as appropriate.
Additionally, President Biden has announced that he will ask Congress to add Australia as a domestic source in title 3 of the Defence Production Act. Currently Canada is the only other country to enjoy that status. This has the potential to streamline industrial based collaboration and build new opportunities for US investment in the production and purchase of Australia's critical minerals, critical technologies and other strategic sectors. Being added as a domestic source will enable the US government to directly invest in Australian projects—for example, in critical minerals technologies or technologies relevant to AUKUS.
Our traditional minerals, such as iron ore and bauxite as inputs to steel and aluminium, will also be integral. Copper production was once seen as secondary to gold mining, but, with the increasing need for copper wiring in electric vehicles, copper might one day be as sought after as gold. Steel, in particular, will play a key role in all renewables. Each new megawatt of solar power requires between 35 to 45 tonnes of steel, and each new megawatt of offshore wind power requires 120 to 180 tonnes of steel. In turn, making 180 tonnes of steel to produce a new megawatt of offshore wind power needs at least 288 tonnes of iron ore and 139 tonnes of metallurgical coal.
Similarly, gas will remain crucial for some time. Some fail to acknowledge this, but Australia's coal and gas resources are essential for energy security, stability and reliability both domestically and across the Asia-Pacific and will be needed for decades.
As I've said, one of the focus areas of this strategy is skills. Exploiting our critical minerals and reaching net zero by 2050 will need all the expertise of the resources sector. It will need our young people to understand that a career in the resources sector is a career supporting the race to net zero. This nation needs geoscientists, geophysicists, chemists, metallurgists and engineers to find and process the critical minerals the world needs to decarbonise and stop dangerous climate change.
As minister, I want to see genuine partnerships between the sector and First Nations peoples. Fifty years ago, in 1973, Labor great Gough Whitlam said:
High among my government's ambitions is to give natural rights to our Aboriginal people. We are determined that their interests will be preserved in any mining operations.
This still rings true today, given more than 60 per cent of resources projects operate on land covered by native title claim or determination. Think about that for a minute: the sheer wealth and prosperity that has been enjoyed by Australians from coast to coast is thanks to the gracious and dignified consent of the First Nations people.
This land always was and always will be Aboriginal land, and we should respect and celebrate the fact that we share this land with the oldest continuous culture on earth. Our prosperity lies in working with First Nations people to mine their land, but they are still suffering from a wealth and health gap that shapes us all. First Nations people are entitled to expect Australia's resources sector will invest in local communities and stand up for the things that matter to them. While the resources industry is the highest employer of Indigenous Australians as a proportion of the total workforce, they must continue providing Indigenous employment and supporting economic participation for First Nations women and men, and providing local recruitment, training and education programs as well as dedicated procurement from Indigenous suppliers. The resources sector has made significant progress in this regard and I acknowledge that commitment.
Given its relationship and record with First Nations communities, I have called for the resources industry to publicly back the Uluru Statement from the Heart and the referendum to be held later this year to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Constitution through the Voice to Parliament. I am pleased that many of Australia's major resource companies, including BHP, Woodside, Rio Tinto and Wesfarmers, among others, will support the recognition of Indigenous Australians through a Voice to Parliament. They will be powerful advocates to help progress this crucial national agenda. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to recognise First Nations people in the Constitution in a meaningful way. As I have said often, the road to net zero runs through the Australian resources industry. This Critical Minerals Strategy is another step along that road—a road the rest of the world is travelling. I thank the House.
]]>It is a serious matter. There are allegations of coal quality testing misconduct. They are being looked into, and we'll make sure that all of these are looked into, as they should properly be. What I would say is that anyone with information on this should go forward to the ACCC. From what the member has said, it sounds as though that has happened. They might not have had the response they needed to have. I will make sure—and I will speak with the Treasurer, of course, about undertaking to ensure—that a response, and a fulsome response, is given, because it's very serious. The export of coal is very important to this country's economy, especially to that of the eastern seaboard, and it will continue to be a provider of energy security for our trading partners, so we do need to have confidence that the testing of that coal is undertaken in a proper manner.
]]>Another approach we rejected was the approach of issuing two versions of the critical minerals strategy and failing to consult absolutely anyone at all. This approach is the rock bottom of policy development in this nation, and those opposite were responsible for it. The new national critical minerals strategy, released today by the Albanese Labor government, changes that. Australia has the geology and, thanks to this government, we now have the policy.
As I've said before, the road to net zero runs through Australia's resources sector. Thanks to this government, our strategy highlights the role that our critical minerals will play in the world's net zero ambitions. This strategy will help to create diverse, resilient and sustainable supply chains. It will build our sovereign capability in critical minerals processing and it will extract more value from our resources, resulting in more jobs and economic activity for our regions. It will help deliver net zero by 2050.
Northern Australia will play a very important role in the development of this industry, and that is why we have earmarked half a billion dollars of NAIF's additional $2 billion appropriation to projects that ally with this critical minerals strategy. This government has also earmarked $1 billion for the Value Adding in Resources Fund, part of the broader $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund, which of course those opposite did oppose.
This government, through Prime Minister Albanese, established the Australia-United States Climate, Critical Minerals and Clean Energy Transformation Compact, a compact which would be impossible for those opposite ever to have introduced, because they denied the important link between critical minerals and reaching net zero emissions in this country. (Time expired)
]]>In March this year Australia recorded a $15 billion trade surplus. A trade surplus means Australian exporters are doing well, and when exporters do well, so does our budget. Our decision to return 80 per cent of revenue upgrades, including those from strong export earnings, back to the budget helps us pay back the trillion dollars of debt we inherited from the coalition.
Trade translates into jobs. One in four Australian jobs is connected to trade. The pandemic restrictions demonstrated that the movement of people holds the same strategic and economic value as a movement of goods and services. That's why in tourism, one of our largest services exports pre-COVID, we're supporting the return of international visitors. The government continues to invest in a range of initiatives that will support the sustainable growth of the visitor economy. The budget included more than $260 million of new funding in our iconic national parks, such as Kakadu and Uluru-Kata Tjuta, to support tourism, conservation and cultural heritage activities; up to $3.4 billion over 10 years of investment in world-class infrastructure for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games; and a $535 million investment in our national collecting institutions, strengthening Australia's cultural infrastructure, which is a key pillar of the government's new cultural policy. We're also providing an additional $204 million to the Great Barrier Reef, delivering on our election commitment to spend a record $1.2 billion to protect, manage and restore the reef in Queensland. The Great Barrier Reef is one of Australia's top tourist destinations, which is why, as part of our record investment, we have launched the $15.1 million Great Barrier Reef Tourism Reef Protection Initiative. These are just some of the measures in the 2023-24 budget that will support tourism and the attractions and events that bring international visitors to our shores. Of course, we're continuing to deliver the $48 million package announced in the October 2022 budget, which is designed to help bring international visitors back, strengthen the industry workforce and support quality tourism products.
Over the years ahead, we know that international trade, including our visitor economy, must continue to be a driver of Australian prosperity. Our government is working hard to share the benefits of that prosperity as widely as possible through the community. One of our biggest priorities has been to stabilise our relationship with China, Australia's largest trading partner. We want a stable and prosperous trading relationship and the full resumption of trade. Visits to China by the Prime Minister, followed by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Trade and Tourism, are showing promising signs of progress. Australia and China have agreed to step up dialogue under our existing free trade agreement to resolve the outstanding trade impediments. China recently announced it would resume imports of Australian timber, as well as stone fruit. That follows positive developments in coal, cotton, and copper ores and concentrates. We want to see all remaining trade impediments removed as soon as possible. As a Western Australian, that is also very important for the people who fish for crayfish off the coast of Western Australia.
At the same time, overreliance on any single trading partner comes with risks, so our government is actively pursuing a trade diversification agenda, including by entering new and comprehensive free trade agreements. Just last month the Australia-UK FTA entered into force, with 99 per cent of Australian goods now entering the UK completely tariff free. Negotiations are moving swiftly to boost our trade agreement with India, the largest growing economy in the world, with a market of 1.4 billion people. And the Minister for Trade and Tourism has just returned from Europe following intensive negotiations on the Australia-Europe free trade agreement. This new trade deal means growth, investment, jobs and higher wages.
We're also deepening our engagement with South-East Asia, including through our Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040. We've also committed $31.9 million in developing the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. That will include key trade and economic partners across seven ASEAN nations, India, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Fiji and the United States. It's a very important initiative and will help advance Australia's trade and economic interests, including in digital and green trade and strengthening regional supply chains. IPEF is important to Australia's geo-economic interests and the key trade and economic agreement that will bring the United States well back into the Indo-Pacific region. We are a safe, reliable and trusted trade partner.
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