Dean Smith WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister to the Shadow Treasurer
2:58 pm
My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Senator Ayres. The government keeps telling Australians there is no fuel supply problem and that stocks remain strong. Yet, today, a service station in York in Western Australia, just 90 minutes from Perth, is counting down the hours until it runs completely out of fuel, has imposed a 50-litre limit and is now turning away farmers because there simply isn't enough diesel to go around. Minister, if Australia's fuel supplies are supposedly so strong, why are farmers in Western Australia being turned away from the bowser?
Tim Ayres NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation
2:59 pm
In addition to the measures that I've outlined earlier in question time today that sit on top of the measures that the government has been taking over the course of the last 10 days of the crisis in the Middle East, and on top of the fuel security measures that we've taken since we were elected, we have, of course, been talking to farmers groups around the country—all of us who've been engaged in this. The minister has engaged since the beginning of the crisis with the farming, fuel and fertiliser communities. I spent some time talking to rice growers in the Riverina today. That's why we have taken measures this week to direct the ACCC to remove the obstacles to fuel companies working together to direct supply to places like the community that you outlined, which have, of course, suffered in the wake of a series of spikes in the demand that have differential effects across the country. It is more acute in some parts of the country than it is in others. Particularly where retailers are accessing supply on the spot market, that does create difficulties where there are spikes in demand.
The job of all of us in this place—the government's job is to govern and to be accountable for that. I would submit that the job that your colleagues have is to work in the national interest and not set your hair on fire and try and create a sense of panic and crisis which drives some of that behaviour—not all but some of that behaviour. It's about taking responsibility and acting in the national interest.
Dean Smith WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister to the Shadow Treasurer
3:01 pm
The employee at the York service station has told the West Australian newspaper:
Monday was our last delivery and we're not sure when the next delivery will be.
Minister, if the government truly has a firm grip on the country's fuel supply, could you tell the Senate when that next delivery will arrive, or are regional Australians expected to simply wait and hope?
Tim Ayres NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation
3:02 pm
Of course, as Senator Smith knows, nobody in this place is in a position to give a specific outline in relation to a specific petrol station. That's not something that anybody could sensibly do. However, what I can say to that employee—
Unidentified interjection - Hansard doesn't record who said this
Opposition Senators:
Opposition senators interjecting—
Sue Lines President
Order! I'm sorry, Minister Ayres. Please resume your seat. I cannot hear the minister's response, and that's because those on my left are way too loud and disorderly.
Tim Ayres NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation
What I can say to that employee, his or her manager and community that they serve is that the measures that were announced today will make a significant difference—100 million litres a month of new petrol supply as a result of changing the fuel standards. The National Coordination Mechanism is continuing to operate to respond to situations like the one that you have outlined or the many situations that I've been engaged directly in with the farming community over the course of the last few weeks.
Dean Smith WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister to the Shadow Treasurer
3:03 pm
Minister, can the Albanese Labor government guarantee that Australia will not run out of fuel?
Tim Ayres NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation
Well, it's interesting. There was an article that made that assertion in the Australian Financial Review earlier this week—precisely the one that you asserted.
Tim Ayres NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation
It had to be withdrawn.
Tim Ayres NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation
What we have outlined and the minister has outlined is that the amount of fuel on hand—1.56 billion litres of petrol and 2.97 billion litres of diesel—has not materially changed since the war began some 10 days or so ago. Ship movements, arrivals here in our ports—
Opposition senators interjecting—
I couldn't be more relevant.
Bridget McKenzie Victoria, National Party, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development
Do we have to get into the trucks and drive them ourselves?
Sue Lines President
Perhaps you should drive a truck during question time, Senator McKenzie, and then at least you wouldn't be interjecting. Senator Cash.
Michaelia Cash WA, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate
A point of order in relation to relevance—programmatic specificity is not what the Australian people require. They actually require an answer to the question. Are we, or aren't we?
Sue Lines President
I do allow leaders some leniency, but that went beyond where my leniency ends. The minister is being relevant.
Tim Ayres NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Industry and Innovation
I didn't understand what you just said, but the reserves are the strongest that they have been in 15 years. The amounts of fuel on hand have not changed substantially. Ship movements are the same at the moment, but we are not complacent. We are watching it very closely indeed. (Time expired)