Lyn Allison (Victoria, Australian Democrats) Share this | Hansard source

In my home state of Victoria, Senator Abetz, coalminers and those working in the electricity sector have been displaced already by machines, by and large. So they know what it is to lose a huge workforce in the Latrobe Valley. Employment levels in the Latrobe Valley still have not recovered. They might do so if we put in new technology like wind turbine manufacturing or if we set up solar energy applications and industries in that area. These people deserve decent jobs, and they are more likely to get them in the renewable energy sector than they are in the coal industry. We can find work for them, but long term it is not going to be in the coal industry. This government seems to think we can go on polluting the atmosphere endlessly with emissions from coal-fired power stations, but it is not the case. The minister needs to drop his scepticism. He needs to read the Stern report, which says that our economies will be worse off if we take no action, and he needs to engage in this science. In his position, as Minister for Finance and Administration, it is important that he understand this. (Time expired)

Question agreed to.