Tim Ayres (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation) Share this | Hansard source

Thanks, Senator Whitten, for that question. It is the job of government to make sure that Australia is more resilient in a period in our history where there is no room for complacency about supply chain challenges. That is the job of the government. As I have indicated, in relation to previous questions over the last few weeks, we have undertaken that work earnestly. We have delivered an outcome where that minimum stockholding obligation is our shock absorber, but it is not the end of the story. It is not the end of the story. We will continue to be held accountable for those questions, as we should. But I do say all of us have a responsibility to be straightforward about the questions in relation to our energy security. It is not the case that Australia has reserves of crude oil that could be economically extracted. That is not the case.

Making that argument is utterly mischievous, whether it's you doing it, Senator, through the chair, or Senator Canavan or others making that argument, because it is not a practical solution. In fact, what it would do is make prices unacceptably high on a long-term basis for Australians. That would be the result. Higher prices and less fuel security would be the result of that. It's imported politics— (Time expired)