James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Shadow Special Minister of State) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is a fuel crisis in Australia. Australians, particularly in the regions, are struggling to access fuel. They can't take their children to school, they can't start their tractors and they can't get on with the job of feeding our nation. For those lucky enough to find fuel, prices are at a record high. Just yesterday, the national average price was nearly $2 a litre. And what's the message from Labor's Canberra politicians? It's blaming the motorists, blaming the farmers and blaming the families for wanting to have fuel. It is victim blaming. Like fuel prices, Labor's arrogance and disdain for the Australian people are reaching record highs.

Fuel security is not an abstract policy debate. It is a daily reality for millions of Australians. For farmers, truck drivers, small businesses and families, fuel is not a luxury; it is an essential to keep the country moving, yet across the country we are seeing concerning reports of the rationing of fuel and of service stations running dry. Farmers are warning they may not be able to access the diesel needed to run essential machinery and to keep their livestock alive. When the fuel runs short in regional Australia, it doesn't just affect motorists; it affects all of us.

So I say to Canberra's Labor politicians: get out of your electric Comcars, get out of Canberra and speak to the people out there on the street. Go down to a petrol station and speak to people about the cost of fuel in Australia and whether they can get fuel. There's a level of arrogance in this government at the moment, who want to blame the victims. Get out of your electric Comcars. Fix the problem. That's your job.