Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Hansard source

This isn't a free ride for industry. They still have to pay traditional commercial rates. Indeed, they will pay those rates at a premium. But they have warmly welcomed the fact that the government has stepped up with a solution to ensure that freight access is both reliable and affordable for them. Indeed, the Geraldton Fishermen's Co-operative—no doubt something that Senator Brockman is familiar with—said: 'If we couldn't find a solution, we would have been stopping our boats and standing down our entire workforce. This action is helping to save many of those jobs.' The Red Meat Advisory Council acknowledged that the continuity and affordability of air export capacity to our valued and high-end export markets is critical. Seafood Industry Australia said that this marks the beginning of a return to normal. Perhaps mostly appropriately, they acknowledged and said, 'There's no better stimulus than getting back to work.' That's what this is all about: ensuring that we support Australians who can to stay in their jobs and businesses who can to stay afloat.