Senate debates

Monday, 25 June 2018

Questions without Notice

Energy

2:57 pm

Photo of Chris KetterChris Ketter (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Cormann. I refer to the article in this morning's The Australian entitled 'Coalition elders fire up for coal'. Former Liberal minister and now head of the Queensland Resources Council Ian Macfarlane yesterday urged the coalition to consider covering the commercial and carbon risks for any private sector investment in a new clean-coal-fired power station. Does the Prime Minister support Mr Macfarlane's position?

Photo of Mathias CormannMathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | | Hansard source

Former minister Ian Macfarlane is a distinguished Australian who's made a great contribution to public life. On this the government's position is very clear: we want to implement the National Energy Guarantee, which will help deliver a reduction in electricity prices. We hope to improve the reliability and stability of our electricity system, which will help us reduce emissions in a way that is economically responsible. Electricity prices doubled under Labor. We've worked hard to push them down by ensuring retailers tell millions of households when their electricity plan has changed and work harder to get them the best deal. Families have saved hundreds of dollars as a result of the decisions that we have made. Origin, EnergyAustralia and AGL have announced they will cut or freeze power prices in New South Wales, South Australia and Queensland. It will be the first time since 2015 there will be no increase to their mid-year retail electricity prices. We have given the industry policy certainty with our plan for the National Energy Guarantee. Through the 2018-19 budget—

Photo of Scott RyanScott Ryan (President) Share this | | Hansard source

Senator Wong on a point of order.

Photo of Penny WongPenny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | | Hansard source

The question was: does the Prime Minister support Mr Macfarlane's position? I would ask the minister to return to the question.

Photo of Scott RyanScott Ryan (President) Share this | | Hansard source

The minister may also address other parts of the question. I neither instruct him how to answer it nor which part of it to answer. I remind the minister of all of the question. He has 48 seconds remaining to answer.

Photo of Mathias CormannMathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | | Hansard source

I've made it very clear that the Prime Minister, of course, supports the government's position. We have our own position—

Photo of Penny WongPenny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | | Hansard source

What is that?

Photo of Mathias CormannMathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | | Hansard source

Our position is to put in place the—

Opposition senators interjecting

Senator Wong likes to both ask and answer questions. You have to win an election before you can do that.

Photo of Penny WongPenny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | | Hansard source

A point of order on direct relevance: the minister was asked whether or not Mr Macfarlane's position was the government's position. The question is: does the Prime Minister support Mr Macfarlane's position? If there is a government position, perhaps your backbench would like to know what it is.

Photo of Scott RyanScott Ryan (President) Share this | | Hansard source

Senator Wong, there was a preamble to the question. The minister is entitled to address that. I cannot instruct him on how to answer a question.

Photo of Mathias CormannMathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | | Hansard source

This is the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate playing political games and trying to be mischievous. Senator Wong understands that the policy position of the government is to pursue the National Energy Guarantee, which is technology neutral—

Senator Wong interjecting

Senator Wong again tries—she is misleading the Senate. Our party room actually overwhelmingly endorsed our National Energy Guarantee.

Senator Jacinta Collins interjecting

Photo of Scott RyanScott Ryan (President) Share this | | Hansard source

If the point of order is about the answer, Senator Collins, the time for the answer has expired.

Photo of Jacinta CollinsJacinta Collins (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Cabinet Secretary) Share this | | Hansard source

The point of order is about the accusation that Senator Wong is misleading the Senate. It's a question; how can she be?

Photo of Scott RyanScott Ryan (President) Share this | | Hansard source

Senator Collins—

Senator Jacinta Collins interjecting

Senator Collins! All interjections are disorderly, and ministers are entitled to address them. Senator Ketter, a supplementary question?

3:01 pm

Photo of Chris KetterChris Ketter (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

Former Nationals senator Ron Boswell has called for the government to directly intervene in the electricity market through a power-purchasing agreement he hopes will result in the construction of a new coal-fired power plant. Does the Prime Minister support Mr Boswell's position?

Photo of Mathias CormannMathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | | Hansard source

We support the government's plan, which is bringing electricity prices down, improving electricity reliability—

Senator Wong interjecting

And here we have Senator Wong interjecting again. She, of course, comes from a state where the Labor Party could not be more discredited. They couldn't even keep the lights on in South Australia! That's why they were thrown out on their ears! The Labor Party in South Australia could not even keep the lights on!

Photo of Jacinta CollinsJacinta Collins (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Cabinet Secretary) Share this | | Hansard source

A point of order on relevance: the question asked was: does the Prime Minister support Mr Boswell's position? The question is, 'What is the government's plan?' not whether you have one!

Photo of Scott RyanScott Ryan (President) Share this | | Hansard source

Senator Collins, I will allow questions to be restated. I would also encourage people not to interject, then people cannot respond to interjections when answering questions.

Photo of Mathias CormannMathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | | Hansard source

If Senator Wong, instead of just playing politics, is genuinely interested in the detail of our National Energy Guarantee, I will send it to her office after question time. I might encourage her to get her friends in the Labor Party to come on board with good, sound policy, because our policy will help reduce emissions in a way that is economically responsible. Our policy will help to bring down electricity prices, improve reliability—and, of course, we will be able to keep the lights on, which is not what the Labor Party was able to do.

Photo of Scott RyanScott Ryan (President) Share this | | Hansard source

Senator Ketter, a final supplementary question?

Honourable senators interjecting

Order on my left and right! I want to hear the question.

3:03 pm

Photo of Chris KetterChris Ketter (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

Given that party elders like Ian Macfarlane and Ron Boswell are now debating the Turnbull government's energy policy 18 months after the minister took his clean energy target to the party room, how much longer will the Prime Minister allow his government's internal climate wars to stand in the way of reform at the cost of Australian energy consumers?

Photo of Mathias CormannMathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | | Hansard source

The question is wrongly drafted and is false. What the Prime Minister and the Minister for the Environment and Energy took to the party room was a proposal for a National Energy Guarantee, which will bring down electricity prices and improve reliability and stability across our electricity market. Under the Labor Party, we know that electricity prices would again be higher. We know that electricity reliability would again be lower. We know that the Labor party in government would push up the cost of electricity and would push down the reliability of electricity supply—

Photo of Jacinta CollinsJacinta Collins (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Cabinet Secretary) Share this | | Hansard source

How?

Photo of Mathias CormannMathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | | Hansard source

Because you want to have an irresponsible Emissions Reduction Fund and you want to have an irresponsible Renewable Energy Target. Our approach is technology neutral.

Senator Jacinta Collins interjecting

Photo of Scott RyanScott Ryan (President) Share this | | Hansard source

Senator Collins! Are you continuing, Senator Cormann?

Photo of Mathias CormannMathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | | Hansard source

The Labor Party is not interesting in policy; the Labor Party is interested in hurting working families across Australia, with higher electricity prices and less reliable energy. I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.