We know that the Labor government remains committed to Operation Sovereign Borders. Despite the comments from the commander of Joint Agency Task Force Operation Sovereign Borders, those opposite continue to mislead the Senate and to mislead the public about the current operations of our borders. Admiral Brett Sonter said:
The mission of Operation Sovereign Borders remains the same today as it was when it was established in 2013: protect Australia's borders, combat people smuggling in our region, and importantly, prevent people from risking their lives at sea.
Importantly, he said:
Any alternate narrative will be exploited by criminal people smugglers to deceive potential irregular immigrants and convince them to risk their lives and travel to Australia by boat.
That is a clear warning to those opposite that this is a debate that needs to be dealt with in facts, that needs to be dealt with in sensitivity and that needs to be dealt with at the national security level, which I thought was bipartisan.
If we want to talk about lawlessness, the other things that undermine the safety of Australians would be to ignore High Court decisions or to think that the parliament or politicians are above the law. That seems to be what those opposite are implying in their comments around the release of detainees. We know and Australians know that these decisions were of the High Court. The High Court made these decisions and, as a result, our government has put very strong measures in place to keep the Australian public safe.
We are also working with our law enforcement agencies across the country, and we have faith in the work that they do. If those opposite do not believe that law enforcement agencies are capable of doing their jobs then they should say that, but we back our law enforcement agencies. We know that they have very strong measures in place. It is a real shame to see those opposite undermine the work of those law enforcement agencies.
When it comes to possible alternatives or solutions, I'd love to see those opposite suggest what they might do in this situation. Actually, this morning on Sky News, they were given the chance. Senator Hume said:
… if the legislative bar is too high, the coalition will come to the party and help them lower that bar.
The reporter asked: 'How would you lower that bar? What would you do?' Senator Hume said, 'Well, that's up to the government.' This was followed up by these questions, which were pretty fair in the circumstances: 'Have you got an idea? Have you got any amendment that you'd like to see?' Of course, Senator Hume had nothing to add to the conversation. So until those opposite can come in here and provide some constructive discussion about really important national security issues, we won't be taking lectures from those opposite. We'll listen to the professionals. We'll listen to the people who are actually operationally in charge of protecting our borders, and we'll take their advice and do what they say and make sure that we don't make it harder for those law enforcement agencies.
This is all about the contrast between our government and those opposite, because while we are focused on keeping Australians safe, the coalition is focused on stoking fear and division. While we are delivering tax cuts for low- and middle-income earners, the coalition won't say if they'll repeal those tax cuts—if they get a chance—and make Australians pay more. While we are strengthening Medicare, those opposite voted against cheaper medicines. While our government is delivering cleaner, cheaper energy, the LNP are out there spruiking expensive nuclear power in places like the Great Barrier Reef. Finally, while the Labor government is delivering super on paid parental leave, those opposite have referred to paid parental leave as a 'welfare scheme'. They are not so focused on delivering for women or their economic security. They're busy knocking off senior Liberal women from the top of their Senate tickets. So we won't be taking lectures on this side of the chamber—not about national security, not about lawlessness and certainly not about delivering for working Australians.
]]>Dave is a passionate volunteer and fundraising leader at the Australian Workers Heritage Museum, which brings vital tourism to the region. He's also a proud presenter at the Tree of Knowledge, the birthplace of the Labor Party—just don't tell those Labor Party members from Balmain! He gives his own personal tours of the Tree of Knowledge from time to time, which I've had the privilege of being a guest at when I first came to the Senate. Kerro also taught me how to shear my first sheep, but that's a story for another day.
I cannot think of anyone more dedicated to their region and more deserving of this award. Again, I want to say a very big congratulations to you, Kerro, on the award of an OAM. Good on you, mate, great job! I look forward to working with you in the future.
]]>Just a few weeks ago, I was in Townsville with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen to announce that we are investing $70 million to develop Townsville's hydrogen hub. This is a huge project for Townsville and I am so proud of it, and I'm so proud of all the people in Townsville who have worked to achieve this goal. Construction on this project will begin next year and be complete by 2026, with commercial operations scheduled to start in 2027. This initial stage of the hub will produce 800 tonnes of green hydrogen per year. That's enough to fuel over 40 heavy vehicles a year. It will then ramp up to around 3,000 tonnes for domestic supply and, ultimately, 150,000 tonnes for export to the rest of the world.
Not only will this hub, led by Edify Energy, produce tonnes of green hydrogen per year; it will also create 200 direct jobs—opportunities for local electricians, plumbers, fitters and concreters—during construction. As well as the ongoing jobs in technical and engineering fields, this is all about delivering good, solid and local jobs for the people of Townsville. Edify, with its partners, including Queensland TAFE, James Cook University and Townsville Enterprise, will work with industry bodies to provide education and training to ensure that Townsville's workforce have the skills required to develop and sustain the region's hydrogen industry.
The Australian government's investment of $70 million is being met by a $27 million investment from the German government into Edify Energy. That is a vote of confidence from our partners across the world that we have something unique to offer—and that is our renewable energy jobs. That is something really to be proud of and I'm so excited to see this evolve over the next few years. This is happening while our government is busy delivering projects like this across the country. Townsville is just one chapter of our $500 million investment in hydrogen hubs in regional centres, including in Gladstone, which is also in Queensland, Bell Bay, Kwinana, the Pilbara, Port Bonython and the Hunter.
These are projects that support Australia's future as a renewable energy powerhouse—because we understand that renewables are the cheapest and cleanest form of energy. I want to say that again because it bears repeating for those who may not be quite sold on renewable energy: it is the cheapest and cleanest form of energy. We are building these projects right now. While we're busy at that, what is the LNP's plan for energy in Queensland? They want to stop investing in job-creating projects like the hydrogen hub in Townsville and they want Australians to wait another decade while they start building nuclear power plants across the country, and that includes right next to the Great Barrier Reef. Yesterday, in the Courier Mail, the LNP said that they have sites in Central Queensland where would put nuclear power plants, including a site in Central Queensland which is also referred to as the 'gateway to the southern Great Barrier Reef'. Analysis shows that Australians would be lumped with a $387 billion cost burden if nuclear power was to replace the retiring coal fired power station fleet, and we would need a minimum of 71 small modular reactors to replace the fleet itself. Peter Dutton and the LNP like to talk up their record on the economy, but these figures are proof that the nuclear energy plan flies in the face of economics and reason itself. After nine years of energy policy chaos, rather than finally embracing a cheap, clean, safe and secure renewable future, all the LNP can do is promise a multibillion-dollar nuclear energy policy. They won't say how much it costs and they won't say what they would cut to pay for it. They are saying now that they are going to put it right on the coastline of the Great Barrier Reef.
Our government is getting on with the job of investing in renewable energy right now, and we're getting on with the job of creating jobs in regional Queensland with renewable energy. That's what Queenslanders want to see, not a failed plan from the LNP. (Time expired)
]]>I want to be very clear that health care should be between patients, their families and their doctors, and the treatment of trans and gender-diverse people, for the young person, is a matter for the young person, their families and their doctors. Children under 18 in Australia can only access transgender health care with the consent of both of their parents or through a court order. Clinical guidelines stipulate that children accessing gender affirmation treatment should be treated by a multidisciplinary team of expert clinicians, including mental health practitioners. This treatment occurs largely within hospitals under the jurisdiction of states and territories.
As government senators have outlined in response to previous attempts to refer this to inquiry, advice has been received from the Royal Australasian College of Physicians that said that a national inquiry would not increase the scientific evidence available regarding gender dysphoria but would further harm vulnerable patients and their families. We know this. We know that an inquiry of this kind would cause further harm to people who are already vulnerable.
The ABC released statistics today, and maybe the senators opposite and those on the crossbench haven't had a chance to see these statistics. They say that more than one in four trans people aged 16 to 85 have seriously thought about taking their own life at some point in their lifetime, and that's compared to one in six people who are not transgender. We are talking about a public debate about people's lives that should be confined to discussions with their health care.
This motion shows again that the Liberal Party are moving more towards right-wing populist policies rather than fact based policies that bring people together, increase wages or protect people at work. That's not what they're interested in. Peter Dutton and the LNP are all about this negativity, and they have zero plan for anything else. That's why they always put politics above helping other people.
I also say this to the senators on the crossbench who will consider this motion but not understand the context of what this motion means to other people outside of this place. This is not only the week of the Sydney Mardi Gras, a moment when the LGBTQI community celebrates but also commemorates the lives that have been lost and the laws that have been changed to decriminalise the lives that we live, but it is a week when the queer community, particularly in Sydney, is mourning the unnecessary and tragic loss of life of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies. To move this motion this week is deeply insulting. I fear these Liberal Party senators and the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, know the context and moved this motion today anyway. I urge those senators on the crossbench to acknowledge this and to stand up against this unnecessary division. I invite those Liberal senators who share these views to ensure that this motion is not moved any further. At the end of the day, we want to protect young people, and that's not what this inquiry would do. It would actually cause harm, when harm is not needed.
]]>The Albanese government is focused on delivering for Australians, particularly when it comes to the cost-of-living pressures. But we are also focused on ensuring that Australians are safe. When it comes to a particular issue which comes up from time to time in this debate, around national security, I want to make it very clear that, under the Albanese government, border protection funding has never been higher. We saw debate and an intervention from the Leader of the Opposition this week about funding of Operation Sovereign Borders. I want to be very clear that the government remains absolutely committed to the policies that underpin Operation Sovereign Borders.
Let me make this very clear: border protection funding has never been higher. Since coming to government we have invested an additional $470 million over the forward estimates into this protection of Australians. That intervention from the Leader of the Opposition was very calculated, I would say, and it was unfortunate. It has ramifications not only for our agencies, who are working day in, day out to protect Australians, but for the safety of Australians themselves. We know that after those comments were made they were quickly dismissed, and I'm not talking about some politicians on this side of the chamber. Very soon after these comments were made we saw a statement from Commander Joint Agency Taskforce Operation Sovereign Borders, Rear Admiral Brett Sonter, that said:
The mission of Operation Sovereign Borders remains the same today as it was when it was established in 2013.
Let's be clear: Rear Admiral Brett Sonter is saying that Operation Sovereign Borders remains the same. He went on to say:
Any alternative narrative will be exploited by criminal people smugglers to deceive potential irregular immigrants and convince them to risk their lives and travel to Australia by boat.
That is what this type of misinformation does: it actually encourages the people smugglers. And that is coming from the commander of the taskforce in charge of Operation Sovereign Borders.
I want to say this as well. Community safety is a lot of things. Community safety also goes to social cohesion. What we've heard in this place from those opposite and some on the crossbench is a complete disregard for the fact that words in this parliament matter. Words in this parliament have an impact on how safe Australians are. The head of ASIO said:
As I have said previously, words matter. ASIO has seen direct connections between inflamed language and inflamed community tensions.
If those opposite are concerned about keeping Australians safe then I would encourage them to look at the words they are using in this chamber. I would encourage them to make sure that the 'facts' they put forward are true and have been fact-checked, and to make sure that they are not looking to mislead Australians and stoke more division. We in this place have a responsibility—and the Albanese government recognises that—to make sure we don't do what the Liberal and National parties and Peter Dutton are doing, which is to go to negativity, go to division and try to divide Australians. That's not what this government is doing. We are seeking to keep Australians safe. That is why we have increased the funding for border protection; that is why we are supporting our agencies and delivering those border protection policies; that is why we're committed to Operation Sovereign Borders; and that's why we know that language in this debate really matters.
]]>We are ensuring that hardworking individuals and families receive the support they need to navigate the challenges of everyday life. What that means to Australian workers is that sparkies, truckies, nurses and early childhood educators are just some of the workers who will stand to benefit from these tax changes. Whether you're a mine worker in Rocky or a cafe worker in Cairns, you will get a tax cut on 1 July because of the Labor government.
We are putting more money back in the pockets of hardworking Australians. We will ensure that 85 per cent of regional Queenslanders see a boost under this proposal.
These tax cuts are not isolated measures. They build on targeted relief while not adding to inflation. Already we have delivered electricity bill relief, made medicines cheaper and made it easier to see a doctor. On 1 July, every Australian taxpayer will receive a tax cut because—
]]>The Prime Minister has looked at this policy and has found a better way to deliver income tax relief for 13.6 million people. Every single Australian taxpayer will get a tax cut. What we know is that that means that more lower income earners and more middle-income earners will receive a bigger tax cut under Labor's plan. That's why, after all their complaining, whingeing and sulking about this, and in spite of everything they're planning to say in the chamber over the next couple of weeks, what we know is that the coalition will walk in here and vote for this policy. It's because they know it's the right thing to do. Australians know it's the right thing to do. Our government knows that the right thing to do is to look at this policy and at the times that we are in, and to make a decision and be upfront about that decision and make sure that we deliver cost-of-living relief for every Australian taxpayer when it is needed the most.
There are Queenslanders who'll be receiving a tax cut. Nurses, teachers and truckies are some of those who are most likely to benefit, with more than 95 per cent of those taxpayers getting a bigger tax cut. Ninety per cent of women taxpayers will be getting a bigger tax cut under this plan. These are all the things you won't hear from those opposite. You'll hear semantics and stories about time lines, but we know that, at the end of the day, they will vote for this legislation because it is the right thing to do. The right thing to do—for me and every other Queensland senator, especially out there in rural and regional Queensland—is to provide cost-of-living relief, and that's exactly what we're doing. It's interesting to me that those opposite—who say that they are the natural home of people from rural and regional Queensland, that they represent people from rural and regional Queensland and that only they know what people in the bush would want and need—are ignoring the pleas of people in rural and regional Queensland, because, under our plan, 784,000 people living in rural and regional Queensland will receive a tax cut, and 85 per cent of people living in regional Queensland will receive a bigger tax cut under Labor.
The average tax cut of the people in the electorates that those opposite say that they represent is $1,500. In Cairns, what that means is that 79,000 people will receive a tax cut, and 87 per cent of those people will receive a bigger cut under this plan that we're delivering. In Townsville, 87 per cent of people will receive a bigger tax cut; that's 78,000 people in the Herbert electorate. That's an average tax cut for all of those people living in Townsville of $1,500. People in Cairns, Townsville and North Queensland do it tough during summers. The cost-of-living crisis is compounded by the disasters that we have lived through. But those opposite want to say to the people living in North Queensland that they would see a better plan, see a better way, know the right thing to do and walk away from it. In Rockhampton, 71,000 people will receive a bigger tax cut, and 82 per cent of people living in that area will receive a bigger tax cut under Labor. The truth is that, in Gladstone, 66,000 people will receive a tax cut, and 82 per cent of those people will receive a bigger tax cut. An average tax cut for people living in Bundaberg is $1,300.
Rural and regional Queenslanders will benefit from this plan, but you won't hear that in the questions from those opposite. Those people opposite are supposed to stand up for the bush and are supposed to stand up for regional Queensland. If they did, they would back in this plan. They would back in a plan to give people more cost-of-living relief when they need it the most. That's what our government is doing.
]]>I've spoken to community members in these tight-knit communities about their experiences. The flooding of their homes and communities unfolded rapidly. It was unprecedented and unpredictable how quickly the water came. The peak of the flooding happened in the dark of the night. Most had been well prepared for Cyclone Jasper, which had passed a few days prior—or so we thought. They packed their tin food, water, torches and so on in cyclone kits that they had started to unpack, only to move them to higher parts of their homes a few days later.
A few days later, residents faced situations they never thought were possible. They spent the night sitting on their rooftops waiting to be rescued, watching their life possessions be inundated by floodwaters, having to make difficult decisions about their pets as floodwaters rose. Further north, landslides along the Captain Cook Highway cut off access to our Douglas Shire communities like Port Douglas and the Daintree. The entire community of Wujal Wujal was evacuated when weather allowed. Whole towns were swallowed by water and mud. Roads were destroyed, homes were destroyed and our community was hurting.
Despite the challenges, communities across Far North Queensland displayed remarkable resilience. Swiftwater rescue crews, the SES, the ADF and local heroes on personal watercraft braved the elements to evacuate those stranded on rooftops across the region. Locals in tinnies pitched in to help. The Queensland State Emergency Service responded bravely to the call for help, receiving an overwhelming 146 calls within Far North Queensland. Our emergency services—the unsung heroes of such disasters—worked tirelessly to rescue, protect and serve our community in the face of such adversity. It was traumatic, and there are, understandably, people in the community still suffering stress and anxiety today and likely for a long time to come.
Less than a day after the cyclone impacted and before the water started to flow, Premier Miles and Minister Watt were in Cairns announcing that they had activated joint funding disaster assistance under the disaster recovery funding arrangements to support affected individuals and councils. It was at that press conference that we expressed a sigh of relief that there wasn't more damage from Cyclone Jasper, only to watch the water flow within the next couple of days. Within a fortnight, our government had delivered almost $18 million in disaster assistance payments directly to people significantly impacted by Tropical Cyclone Jasper in Far North Queensland.
Once our airport reopened, Prime Minister Albanese and Premier Miles flew to Cairns to survey the damage. The thanks and care they showed was appreciated on the ground—and I'm sure that the slab of XXXX Gold they donated to the Ergon workers was also appreciated! Those Ergon workers gave up their Christmas holidays with their families to restore power to families in Far North Queensland, and we cannot thank them enough. That day, $64 million for cyclone recovery in Far North Queensland was announced. We provided $25 million of extraordinary recovery grants for primary producers and $25 million in extraordinary recovery grants for small businesses and not-for-profits as well. We also announced $9 million in local recovery and resilience grants for eligible councils and started to build towards tourism recovery by announcing $5 million for the region.
The Prime Minister and the Premier visited residents on our beaches that day. This included Jan, who had braved the floodwaters by getting on top of her kitchen bench as waters flowed through her home. Jan's kitchen has to be replaced, and she told me it was so hot when the power went out that she slept on the tiles in her living room.
Cairns was not the only region that was hard hit. In early January I saw for myself the damage to communities in Wujal Wujal and Degarra. When I was there I met Bill, who showed me the tree that he tied a bedsheet around to hold onto when the water went over his house. It was incredible just how high the water reached and how damaging the flood was to these northern communities. And I want to acknowledge that it wasn't just Cairns that experienced this flooding. It paints a picture of what many other communities across the Douglas region must have experienced.
Our tourism industry has been hit hard, but we are bouncing back. Our government announced $24 million for our Tourism Recovery Resilience Program to provide grants to far northern operators who have been severely impacted by this extreme weather. Helping tourism operators to get back on their feet and helping to get visitors back to our region has been a priority for our government. As Jenny Hill, the mayor of Townsville, said to me the other day, response is easy but recovery takes time.
This disaster saw an extensive response from government agencies, Ergon workers, SES, council crews, NEMA, QRA—the list goes on, and I want to thank them all. I want to thank the federal government and the Queensland government for working together so quickly to get funding and support out the door. I want to thank our local councils for the work they've done. I want to thank, more importantly, those heroes of Far North Queensland. On 21 December I met real-life hero Bret Little, more commonly known as Magoo, in Cooktown. He saved the lives of people who were trapped on the roof of the Lion's Den pub in Rossville, ferrying them to safety in his chopper. I also met Roscoe, who rescued his neighbours and various pets, homing them in his place in Holloways.
There are countless stories just like this of unsung heroes who pitched in when they were needed. But I want to pay a special tribute to the people of Far North Queensland today. The outpouring of support from our regions is nothing short of extraordinary. People have stood together, and we have rebuilt. Tropical Cyclone Jasper was the wettest tropical cyclone ever recorded in Australia. As it bucketed down an unprecedented and unpredictable amount of rain across Far North Queensland, it was deafening and daunting. Most recently, Townsville and surrounds were hit by Tropical Cyclone Kirrily. Although the damage was less severe than that of Jasper, it marks that this cyclone season is just beginning. The Ergon trucks rolled out again across Queensland.
Queenslanders are no strangers to disasters. We know that the impact of climate change means we will face more extreme weather. Queenslanders are good at being prepared, we're good at responding and we're good at recovering. But that's why our government has been so focused on disaster preparedness, mitigation and resilience, because Queenslanders know how important it is to be prepared for these disasters, to respond together and to stand together in recovery. Response is easy; recovering is hard.
But I'm here to tell people across the country that Far North Queensland is open for business. The reef is ready, and it looks great. The rainforest is open and ready for you to visit. If you want to support our community after everything we've been through—it was a very tough Christmas for some people in our region—the best gift we could receive is a visit from tourists all across Australia. So please take advantage of the discounted flights that have been provided with funding from the state and federal government and book a holiday to Far North Queensland today. It is something that will make a big difference to our small community, who have been through a really tough time.
]]>When the Senate committee inquiry into the closing the loopholes legislation came to Central Queensland, Noah Chapman from Rockhampton said this:
… when I first started out at the mine where I'm at, all the tradesmen were on $68 an hour. I started out there on $13 an hour, which was 40 per cent of the award at the time, not 40 per cent of the tradesman's wage.
The Federal Secretary of the AMIEU, Matt Journeaux, said:
You now have a situation where two workers are working side by side doing the identical job, with one employed directly and one employed by labour hire. The labour hire worker will receive substantially less for doing the same work.
This isn't a new problem. Actually, in 2019, the member for Capricornia, Michelle Landry, said that she would wholeheartedly support the introduction of laws to prevent the amount of insecure work in the mining industry. But then she voted against them. Workers have been calling for years for laws to prevent big companies making agreements with workers for fair wages and conditions and then using labour hire to undercut those wages. The Albanese Labor government is determined to protect workers and lift wages.
]]>Firstly, there is a crucial need to repair our natural environment right now. We can't wait. We've lost a decade to bickering, politics and negativity from the Liberal-National coalition. We've lost a decade. We have lost time and we need to make it up urgently. That is what everyone is telling us, particularly when it comes to the environment. The Australia state of the environment report, which I'll speak about shortly, confirms that.
Secondly, the things that are being lost in this debate are the very real and exciting opportunities that this scheme could unlock. They get lost by those opposite—they don't want to see those opportunities—but I see those opportunities firsthand in the work of nature repair happening in catchments around Queensland, all the way up the coast. I'm really proud see the work that's been going on. Just imagine the possibility if those small-scale projects that have had such a crucial environmental impact were given the ability to go full-scale. There would be so many jobs and so many partnerships supported. Those very real opportunities won't be spoken about by those opposite, but they are what we on this side of the chamber know will result from this bill.
The last thing that anyone in this chamber or outside this chamber should ever forget is that the Liberal and National parties will stand in the way of environmental reform every day of the week. It doesn't matter what type of reform it is. It wouldn't matter if they had actually drafted this bill themselves—which they did; they had a version of this bill and a version of this scheme. It doesn't matter what's in this bill; it's for the environment and it's for working alongside people to make sure we can repair our environment, so they're against it. Their arguments and the debate they want to have aren't about improving the environment or creating more jobs; they are just dead against any environmental reform. Anyone who lines up with them also lines up with their decades-long record on environmental destruction, vandalism and complete disregard for how important our environment actually is for our economy.
Labor today, in supporting this bill's passage through the Senate, is creating a world-first nature repair market. The Nature Repair Market Bill will see the introduction of a world-leading voluntary market framework to support landholders in protecting and restoring nature. This will make it easier for businesses, organisations, governments and individuals to invest in projects to protect and repair nature, because we don't want just to stop environmental decline; we want to repair it. We must. We need to right now.
It's about bringing people together on this journey. We talk about that a lot—not just in this chamber; I talk about it a lot in my work as this Special Envoy for the Great Barrier Reef. For so long when it came to these debates, and it continues today through this discussion, the Liberals and Nationals would have you believe that we need to fit people, particularly people from regional Australia, into boxes, into a binary situation where it's farmers versus scientists, landowners versus conservationists, agriculture versus traditional owners, environment versus the economy, or farming jobs versus jobs on the reef. Respectfully, I'd argue that sometimes those from the Greens Party fall into that trap as well. But that's not how you deliver reform, and it's not how you deliver outcomes in regional Australia. Actually getting farmers, scientists, landowners, conservationists and First Nations people to sit down, partner and find the way that we can work together is how you get results. That's what the Nature Repair Market Bill 2023 identifies: that there's an opportunity here if we bring people together instead of saying that you must always be on opposite sides of this debate.
That's why Labor bring people together in this space. It's what we've continued to do in the work that we've done for the environment, and for very good reasons. You don't have to delve too far into the State of the environment report to understand the seriousness of the task that we have at hand: one of environmental degradation, loss and inaction. We want to see our environment protected. Australians love the outdoors. We're so lucky to have such a diverse range of incredible landscapes, waterways, and ecosystems around us in our country. Maybe this is something that people like me who live in regional Australia take for granted sometimes, that we can just drive 45 minutes up the tablelands and jump into a waterfall and that we've got these pristine environments that are so beautiful. But, if we lose them, we lose so much about what makes Australia special. A healthy environment is important to communities, economies and our First Nations culture—our way of life. It impacts everything that we do. Just last week we saw an intense debate in this place and right around the country about protecting the mighty Murray-Darling, another critical environment asset. It's so important to our country, our regions and the people that live there. It's a river system that we want to ensure becomes healthier and more sustainable and one that we want to protect from future droughts.
The Nature Repair Market Bill represents another important, pivotal moment for our environment. This is, despite what those opposite will have you believe, what the bill will do. The Nature Repair Market Bill, together with the Nature Repair Market (Consequential Amendments) Bill, aims to establish a world-first nature repair market. The bills provide the legislative framework for a voluntary national market in biodiversity certificates to enable private investment in high-integrity projects to protect, manage, and restore nature. The market will be open to landholders, farmers, First Nations people, conservation groups and businesses. The market will enable project proponents to undertake projects that protect the environment and protect and enhance biodiversity on a range of land tenures, including the aquatic environment and the ocean to the extent of Australia's territorial sea. Project proponents will be able to apply to the Clean Energy Regulator for a unique biodiversity certificate that could then be sold to interested persons in the market, very simply being rewarded for the hard work that you put into the environment. They will be able to monetise this really important work that's already happening and be able to lift the scale of these projects from small-scale and admirable projects to big-change projects that make a huge difference to our environment.
The bill is framework legislation, and there will be rules and biodiversity assessment instruments introduced so we can get the methodology right. These legal instruments will be subject to consultation. It's really significant, I think, that what we are talking about is a market that will include tradeable biodiversity certificates, insurance and compliance arrangements, a public register and a nationally consistent approach for measuring biodiversity outcomes, because we know around Australia there are different credit schemes in place. People are talking about the opportunity that this could capture—
]]>Unfortunately, after 10 years, those opposite had 22 draft policies but they couldn't land a single one, so they are here today to lecture us about energy policy. After 22 failed goes, they didn't land a single policy but they are here today to lecture us about energy policy. It's really important that Australians know that there are no secrets to Labor's policy. I don't know why those opposite are so opposed to renewable energy. That is a secret to me. I don't understand why they're so against enhancing the natural resources of our country. But we made sure that we took to the election a clear and decisive plan to reduce emissions and get our country to net zero. One of the first acts of our government was to limit our emissions reduction targets. We have also doubled approvals for renewable energy projects, with the sector already supporting thousands of jobs around the country. Speaking of jobs, we are providing clean energy apprenticeships to ensure that we have the skilled workforce that's needed for the thousands of jobs that this sector will create.
When it comes to policies, we know from this motion today that the Liberals and Nationals have a policy of bringing in nuclear power. What we don't know are the details of the policy. We don't know where, we don't know when and we don't know how much. Today on RN breakfast, the shadow minister for energy belled the cat on some of these details. He said that he would be absolutely happy to welcome a nuclear facility to his electorate of Fairfax in Queensland. He couldn't tell presenter how much the policy would cost. We know that there are estimates that it would cost Australian $25,000 each for the $387 billion cost burden that the Liberals' nuclear plan would put on Australians. What they were able to tell us is that when it comes to nuclear facilities, they are happy to have them on Coolum Beach, just down the road from Noosa, and all the way through our Queensland coast. They need to tell us how much it's going to cost, they need to tell us where they're going to put them and they need to tell us when. It's a simple question. If they have a policy, tell us the details. There are no secrets with us but there are secrets on the other side.
Finally, I'll turn to the other issue raised in this motion—and I thank Senator Cadell. COP28 is taking place at the moment. Many senators have a keen interest in COP28, including senators from the Liberal and National parties. Some of them are heading over there. At least 10 members of the opposition have registered to attend—Senator Davey, Senator Kovacic, Senator McKenzie, Senator Smith and Senator Bragg. This is in addition to the member for Fairfax, the member for Page, the member for Bradfield, the member for Lyne and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. They're all heading over there, but the question I have—and we'll find out in the ordinary course of declarations that are required by members of parliament, but it remains a question—is: who is funding these trips?
One option may be the Coalition for Conservation, and I say this only because we know that this same group sent delegations of coalition MPs and senators to COP26 in Glasgow and COP27 in Egypt.
They've also announced that they'll be sending a delegation to COP28. Is this the group funding these MPs and senators to go to COP28? The Coalition for Conservation is an internal lobby group within the coalition. I tripped over those words as little because they make it clear in their annual report that, unlike other environmental organisations, they have a 'pro-growth' philosophy.
It was actually Senator Van, a member of the COP27 delegation, who said that the role of the group has been to highlight conservative voices. So it's not so much about conservation but about conservative voices in this discussion. It's an interesting group. We know who's going to COP28, we know that previous delegations have been supported by the Coalition for Conservation, but we don't know who is funding the Coalition for Conservation, because their donors are secret. When it comes to the LNP and nuclear power policy, that's all we seem to get. (Time expired)
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