Nita Green (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I seek leave to have the second reading speech incorporated in Hansard.

Leave granted.

The speech read as follows—

EXPORT FINANCE AND INSURANCE CORPORATION AMENDMENT (STRATEGIC RESERVE) BILL 2026

The events of the past few weeks have been a reminder to us all that while Australia is an island, we are not removed from the world.

Right now, a war being fought on the other side of the world is having a real impact on Australians here at home.

No country will be immune from the impacts of this conflict. But what Governments can and must do is act.

That's exactly what this Government has done. Acting decisively and planning for new challenges that might arise.

We have boosted fuel supply by releasing up to 20 per cent of the baseline Minimum Stockholding Obligation for petrol and diesel. Those stocks are now flowing across the country to the areas that need it most.

We've acted to get more fuels into the Australian market by temporarily amending the fuel standards.

We've fixed refinery support to underpin the important role these facilities play in domestic supply.

We've appointed Anthea Harris as Fuel Supply Taskforce Coordinator to support coordination across governments and sectors.

And we are working directly with international suppliers to keep scheduled arrivals on track; But we cannot afford to be complacent.

The longer this war goes on, the more severe the impacts will be.

Today we take the next step to ensure Australia remains prepared. Our focus is on acting now to insulate Australians as best we can from what's ahead.

The fact is that the broader international environment is becoming increasingly volatile.

Cargo is available on the international market—but it is becoming more expensive and riskier to secure commercially.

Oil prices are moving sharply.

The risk premium for purchasing discretionary cargoes is rising. Work to scope deals and secure additional fuel is already underway.

That's why today's bill is so urgent. This Bill creates a Strategic Reserve to secure the supply of strategic materials that are vital for Australia's economy.

These include fuel, critical minerals, and other goods and materials that may be impacted by disruptions to supply chains.

The Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Strategic Reserve) Bill 2026 will ensure Australia's preparedness to address supply chain disruption of materials, goods or things.

This includes fuel and other commodities such as fertiliser, experiencing disruption as a result of market volatility and geopolitical events including the current conflict in the Middle East.

Specifically, through this Bill, the Albanese Government is taking steps to shield Australians from potential future fuel supply chain disruptions.

This bill establishes a new fuel security trading power to acquire additional fuel in the international market for domestic use.

This fuel security support from the Government will not be business as usual. It must be additional supplies that are available on the international market.

It will underwrite the purchase of shiploads of fuel to get here to Australia.

Export Finance Australia will have a very flexible suite of measures to work with companies.

It can provide insurance, derivatives, loans and other arrangements to make sure that those companies can go and get those cargoes for Australia and for Australians.

These new fuel security powers will put Australia in a strong position, securing fuel supply where it may be cost prohibitive for private suppliers to source on commercial terms, without government support.

Building on Export Finance Australia's expertise as Australia's export credit agency, the Bill provides Export Finance Australia (EFA) with the commercial and financial functions necessary to deliver on the Strategic Reserve's objectives.

The legislation will give EFA a broad financial toolkit to use on the National Interest Account (NIA) that will go beyond the debt and equity tools it currently has available on the NIA.

On behalf of, and at the direction of the Government, EFA will have the ability to secure supply, sell and selectively stockpile fuel, critical minerals and other strategic materials.

These powers will help secure Australia's fuel supply, address regional shortages or supply gaps impacting critical services, and position Australia as a trusted and stable partner in high-value, vulnerable supply chains.

As outlined, this Bill responds to the immediate challenge of fuel security.

But it will also include measures to strengthen Australia's economic security in the medium to long term.

This bill also gives legislative effect to the Government's election commitment to develop and implement a new $1.2 billion Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve

This will cement Australia at the forefront of global efforts to stabilise critical minerals markets and shore up reliable access to critical minerals vital for Australia's economy, national security and our Future Made in Australia ambitions.

Australia has some of the largest deposits of critical minerals in the world—minerals vital to renewable energy and defence technology supply chains.

The Bill provides Export Finance Australia with the commercial and financial functions necessary to construct complex financial arrangements that deliver on the objectives of the Reserve.

These new tools will allow EFA to construct financial arrangements via:

The Bill will ensure the Reserve can help meet critical minerals demand, support offtake, stockpile critical minerals, if needed, and help to provide price certainty.

As the Government announced in January, the Reserve will initially focus on antimony, gallium, and rare earth elements.

The integration of critical minerals into today's Strategic Reserve builds on the Albanese Labor Government's work to secure investment in Australia's critical minerals sector.

This will create more high-paid jobs for Australians and deliver resilient and sustainable critical minerals supply chains.

In addition to safeguarding Australia's economic and national security, the Reserve will position us to collaborate even more closely with key international partners to develop integrated, end-to-end critical minerals supply chains.

Further development of Australia's abundant supply of critical minerals will diversify global supply chains and strengthen economic partnerships with other nations.

We look forward to working with the United States, Japan, Republic of Korea, Europe, Canada and the UK as we implement the critical minerals Strategic Reserve.

Our Government is undertaking every practical measure to shield our nation from the worst of this global uncertainty.

While Australia continues to receive sufficient fuel overall, this Bill will help position us to manage fuel supply chain disruptions and ensure we have a wider range of tools available to respond to Australian's everyday needs.

Establishing this Strategic Reserve is in our national interest, now, and in the future.

We will not wait for a crisis to deepen before we act. We will prepare for what may come, and we will act ahead of the curve. What we do today will shield Australians from the challenges of tomorrow.

Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Finally, colleagues, the Labor Party has realised that oil, diesel and petrol are strategic commodities. What the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Strategic Reserve) Bill 2026 does—what the Labor Party are doing at the last minute as we enter perhaps the worst energy crisis since the 1970s—is finally, belatedly recognise we need fossil fuels to keep our country moving. It's taken them awhile; they have, for their first four years in government, run a war on fossil fuels, and that war, which they have won some battles at, I must say, has meant Australia is entering this energy crisis in a much more vulnerable state than we should otherwise , because the Labor Party just don't like fossil fuels. They don't like oil. They don't like petrol. They don't like diesel. And now they expect us—they expect the Australian people—to trust them to deal with a major oil shortage.

I welcome this bill. I welcome the belated recognition of the importance of fossil fuels. I've been trying to scream this from the rooftops for my whole political career, because the basic facts are things don't get done in our economy unless we have a balanced mix of energy sources, and that does and must include the application of liquid fuels, because liquid fuels are what moves the trucks. They are what helps our tractors plant our food, what keeps our major export industries going and what helps transport the things we in this country need to import from overseas. Without them, our country stops. Without them, people will suffer. There's no doubt about that.

What the bill does, as I was hinting at, is establish strategic reserves or a list of strategic commodities that can be added to a strategic reserve. The government has used this as a backdoor to establish a strategic critical minerals reserve; I'll give them that. There is the ability to add other materials, I note, including, as the government has flagged, fertiliser and PVC, which are also things that are made from petrochemical products, from these so-called evil fossil fuels that help feed us and help house us. We do very much need them.

Surprisingly, the government has not put solar panels or wind turbines on the strategic reserve lists. I thought we had been told for years that all we had to do was capture our sun and our wind and everything would be rosy. Again, we're getting a lesson from the school of hard knocks that the fairytales the government have told our country have turned out to be that very thing.

So welcome back to the Labor Party. Welcome back to the land of common sense and the planet called Earth. It's just a little bit late, and I do think there are still shortcomings with this approach, which, unfortunately, may cause issues for us in the future. As I say, we will happily guide the Labor Party back to planet Earth. We've been here. We never left, so we know the way around here, and we'll help them get this bill through the Senate at the last minute. But, in doing so, I want to flag that we will move some amendments that would, once and for all, see Labor's war on fossil fuels end. If the Labor Party doesn't support these very reasonable amendments, we will see that their last-minute conversion to these issues is fake one. It's not real. They are just trying to manage themselves from one political crisis to another, not to really solve the issues ahead of our nation.

One of our amendments will, very simply, get rid of the damage the Labor Party did just a year ago. Right here tonight they're saying: 'Oh, we love fossil fuels. We want to bring these ships in. We want to ensure them.' You'll hear them speak about that tonight. But just a year ago the Labor Party changed the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Act to ban Efic from supporting coal, oil and gas. That is in section 23C of the act. We'll move an amendment to remove that.

If the Labor Party is serious about solving this oil crisis they will support us in removing the very damage that they did just last year. We know what the Labor Party did last summer. We know that last summer the Labor Party sought to kill our coal, oil and gas industry. So it's a bit rich for them to come in here tonight and say that somehow they now support it.

Finally, we'll give the Labor Party the opportunity to unwind the dodgy deal they did with the Greens just four months ago. Just four months ago the Labor Party moved an amendment to the EPBC Act, to environmental laws, to exclude the ability of the environment minister to approve a project if it involves fossil fuels. Amazingly—absurdly—we're about to go into the worst energy crisis since the 1970s, we're about to leave this place for five weeks and the government, thanks to its deal with the Greens, has no ability to approve a project that might help us bring more oil online, because they have excluded the ability for that to be in the national interest. Surely it is in our national interest to approve a project that underpins our liquid fuel security in this country. (Time expired)

Deborah O'Neill (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

While I appreciate the drama and rhetorical flourish of contributions here in the chamber, Australians need fuel. They're not interested in words being issued with passion and vigour that actually mean nothing to them when they get to the bowser. They need a responsible government that's actually doing what needs to be done.

I want to put on the record that, in the preparation of the vehicle that is going to allow us to get the fuel in and secure the continuity of fuel supply for Australians, the government has been working very carefully, consulting to make sure that what we do for our fuel sector as well as the critical minerals sector is supported. Looking at the stakeholders who have invested time in making sure the legislation that is coming to this place today—which has long been in preparation—we have the support of the critical minerals strategic resources sector itself. Those opposite will misrepresent our relationship with that very important part of Australia's economy, but the reality is that they support this piece of legislation.

Since the war broke out in the Middle East with Iran, Israel and the US, and the subsequent impact on all parts of the Middle East, major fuel retailers and refiners have been consulting with the government. Let me tell you, in those meetings there's a lot less rhetorical flourish and a lot more 'Let's deal with the reality,' in a truly Australian way: we've got a few challenges; let's get on with the job.

What is happening with this particular piece of legislation is part of our carefully calibrated National Fuel Security Plan. We want to keep Australia open, and we want to keep Australia moving. There are four phases that the government has outlined in the responsible management of the challenges we face right now in 2026—no looking backwards, only looking forward, to make sure Australians' needs are fulfilled. Phase 1 is plan and prepare; that's what we're doing, that's what we've been able to undertake to get to a point where this legislation is now responsibly before the parliament. Phase 2 is keeping Australia moving; that is what this vehicle will enable. At stage 3, there will be targeted opportunities for taking action. And at stage IV—a responsible government prepares—we will make sure we are there to protect critical services for all Australians. We can pray for peace in the Middle East, and we will all benefit from that, not just in the Middle East but right here in Australia, in the re-establishment of the processes of peace that deliver prosperity and certainty into our market.

Export Finance Australia needs new powers to finance the import of fuel and other necessary goods. In this parliament we talk all the time about making sure our farmers have urea. We've heard from the housing industry that we need things like PVC piping, and more and more conversations with stakeholders will reveal critical things that need to come into the country. This very elegant vehicle will allow Export Finance Australia to: provide financial derivatives; provide price support; purchase, sell and stockpile fuel and other necessary goods to ensure domestic availability as and when directed by government; and financially hedge resulting exposures as appropriate.

This is a degree of flexibility built in here to make sure that, if a big company like Viva finds that there is a whole cargo of fuel on the spot market that can come to Australia but the market is so volatile that they are not willing to take the risk—or, in the case of a small provider that really services regional Australia, they simply do not have the financial resources to manage the risk—the government will underwrite and support that company in undertaking that business, bringing the fuel to our nation. This is not a replacement for good business decision-making, but it is a vital support to the supply to our nation.

And let me clear: it is only possible because this excellent vehicle, as I know, has been the work of Minister Madeleine King for a long time. She has been able to successfully work with her colleagues Mr Bowen and Senator Don Farrell to bring about this important tool to provide Australians with the certainty that we need and deserve. (Time expired)

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Waters and Senator Bragg for their courtesy in allowing me to speak earlier in this debate. This is a bill about Australia's economic resilience, and I thank Minister Farrell for his work to deliver this important legislation. The current conflict in the Middle East is an unprecedented shock to global energy markets. Iran's weaponisation of the Strait of Hormuz has severely disrupted global supply chains, including fuels and other critical supplies needed here in Australia.

We recognise that these disruptions have real consequences for Australian businesses and Australian households, so we are doing all that we can to bolster the supply of fuel for Australians, and I'm pleased that one of our portfolio agencies, Export Finance Australia, is playing a critical role in this. Economic resilience contributes to Australia's security and strengthens Australian sovereignty. I have spoken about using all tools of statecraft to maximise our national power, especially in these turbulent times. Through this bill, Australian agency EFA will continue to support businesses across the materials they need to keep Australia moving in this time of disruption.

This legislation provides the government with a strategic reserve function and empowers EFA to help secure, supply, sell and stockpile strategically and to access a broader financial toolkit including insurance guarantees, loans and other arrangements. What does this mean? Practically, it means that these tools enable EFA to step in and support businesses purchasing critical supplies in the national interest. We are under no illusion about the world we face, and our government is focused on building our resilience to withstand global shocks, make sovereign choices and keep our people and economy moving no matter what the world throws at us. Importantly, this bill builds upon the actions this government has engaged in over the past four years to build Australia's resilience in an ever less stable world.

We want a peaceful, stable, prosperous region where no country dominates and no country is dominated, and we are working to achieve that. We want a region in which the collective prosperity and collective security of our partners and neighbours are tied to our own, and we know we cannot just rely on the old model to keep Australia secure, which is why we have worked to secure, strengthen and diversify our relationships in the region, making the right investments with the right partners at the right time. It is why we are developing the Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve, which will cement Australia at the forefront of global efforts to diversify supply for critical mineral markets during a period of significant market uncertainty and volatility. It is why we launched Invested: Australia's Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040, which has seen more than $2 billion in trade outcomes since 2024.

This government has supported over $1.2 billion in Australian investment into the region, and investment from South-East Asia to Australia has increased by more than $650 million. Our $2 billion Southeast Asia Infrastructure Financing Facility is working with Australian investors to support new opportunities in renewable energy, telecommunications and infrastructure. All of this means more opportunities for Australian businesses to grow, more Australian jobs, more economic prosperity and more resilience for our country. For the past 3½ years, the Albanese government have been building Australia's future in our region. This is what we rely on in challenging times.

The government has been clear: the longer this war goes, the worse the impacts will be. We are acting now to prepare and shield Australians from the worst of it, ensuring our farmers, our regional communities and the services all Australians rely on can continue to access the fuel they need and using all tools of national power to make ourselves stronger at home and more resilient to future disruption.

I thank the officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and from Export Finance Australia who worked around the clock to deliver this key piece of legislation so quickly. This bill is a testament to what can be achieved to advance Australia's national interest when we bring together all arms of statecraft. This bill is an act of economic resilience, and I encourage all in the Senate to support this legislation.

Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak to the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Strategic Reserve) Bill, which has been raced through parliament in the last 48 hours. I want to make it clear at the outset that the Greens share the concerns of many in our community that the war in Iran is much more serious and long lasting than many in this place thought it would be when we questioned them just a few weeks ago. The dangerous actions of Trump and Netanyahu have been visible and painfully real to anyone who's had to fill up in the past few weeks. While I've condemned our government for their so early support of this war—first out of the blocks—and their lack of preparedness for another oil shock, I have shared their concern that we need to take actions now to ensure we can buffer against the risk that it gets worse as the months go on.

I feel for our community. The cost of living was already out of control, particularly for those renting, for those on pensions, for those studying and for those with older, less well-insulated homes or no homes at all. The cost of living was skyrocketing because of corporate profits and price gouging, while wages were flatlining, so our community was already at its limits. There's nothing spare for another shock. So I agree it's critical to pull all levers now, not wait until things get worse to act. However, it is deeply disappointing that, in the four years since Labor took government, they have not prioritised learning the lessons of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent economic pain that it caused our community and turning that into a commitment to a faster transition away from foreign fossil fuels, given how readily available those alternative technologies are and how we have those resources in spades here onshore. It is deeply disappointing that we're authorising up to $3 billion today to go to this project and we're not simultaneously speeding through a minimum 25 per cent gas tax on the likes of Santos for the obscene war profits that they are making to help offset the expense of this.

The Greens support emergency measures to make sure Australia has enough fuel and enough of the resources that we need to keep freight and food moving around this country during the crisis. But this bill does a hell of a lot more than just that. This bill grants a range of broad and unchecked powers to all future ministers well after this crisis is over, in perpetuity, and in particular category (c) in this bill would give the government of the day the power to funnel public money into anything at all that the minister determines unilaterally is in the national interest. I want to put that clearly on the record tonight. The government have inserted into this legislation the ability of Export Finance Australia to invest, via contract, loans, guarantees or equity, into 'any material, good or other thing that may be imported' and 'is experiencing, or is vulnerable to experiencing, supply chain disruptions'. That category is very, very wide. Theoretically, almost any importable good experiencing supply disruption could qualify as a category (c) item. This is effectively a blank cheque for this government and all future governments. None of that comes back to parliament to decide on or to consider or even to disallow if it's an egregious use of public resources.

The government clearly have a mindset of 'Don't waste a crisis', and they're using the urgency of the fuel crisis as cover to give themselves sweeping powers to invest in anything at all in the future, and that could include things like weapons manufacturing. I will point out that this is not limited to the duration of the fuel crisis; they are forever powers. That's why the Greens have asked the government to make these emergency measures temporary and sunset after six months. That's why I will be moving an amendment to do just that. The government has not made the case to extend these measures any longer, nor have they made the case that a minister should be able to make these decisions without bringing them back to parliament for a review, as is the normal role of the Senate, which is why I have a second committee-stage amendment to correct that. Our third committee-stage amendment seeks to rule out any use of this new power to perpetuate war or to invest in weapons—very commonsense guardrails that I urge the Senate to support. People deserve support. They didn't ask for this war. They definitely didn't ask for the chaos that it's causing. And here we are still so desperately reliant on foreign fossil fuels when we have an abundance of renewable energy that we could be electrifying our transport fleet with, making sure that people's daily needs are met and we have safe renewable energy independence. (Time expired)

Andrew Bragg (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Housing and Homelessness) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is one clear fact that comes out of this crisis, and that is that Australia is massively underprepared for what are very dangerous times. We live in extremely dangerous times, where we have a slew of countries that hate our democratic traditions and hate our free societies. Do you know what the best insurance policy for dangerous times would have been? An abundance of energy, all forms of energy—all the stuff that is underneath our feet in this country or even in the sun above us. We should have had an abundance of energy, because this is going to be a massive race over the next 20 or 30 years, as to who can get the most energy. It is an insane position for Australia to be a massive exporter of fossil fuels but not use them ourselves, just as it is insane for Australia not to be able to use renewables on an industrial scale just as we do in households. So we need more of everything, but this government has had no plan to protect Australia against the disruption that we now see in the Middle East, which was entirely predictable.

I want to touch on this oil issue because I think it is a matter of great public importance. We should have been able to get oil out of the ground. We have 42 years of oil in this country underneath our feet, but we haven't been able to get to it, because of the crazy environmental laws, under which it takes up to eight years to get an approval. Most companies, most people, would give up. It's amazing that some companies have pursued their oil and gas developments on the North West Shelf and the Browse. It's amazing that they were prepared to go with it—incredible. But it raises the question about the viability of future projects. The fact that we haven't been able to get oil out of the ground really does concern me. It concerns me that now developments like the Taroom Trough might not be expedited as they should be. Most people would look at this and say, 'We need a lot of oil because we have petrol and diesel cars and vehicles needed for primary production and other reasons, and we're importing it all.' There's nothing wrong with importing things, but, on an industrial scale like this, it's insane when you've actually got the resources yourself. There is this bizarre purity test people want to impose on politicians as to what sort of energy sources they like. Well, I like everything. I want to see more renewables, and I want to see more fossil fuels, because that's power, and, right now, that's the best form of insurance.

Mr Albanese and Mr Murray Watt declared themselves the kings of the environment when they passed the environmental laws through their deal with the Greens. That was six months ago. They promised we'd be able to get more approvals for major projects, including energy production, and, after six months, we have seen nothing. We saw a shell of a bill passed through this joint, and then, after that, we saw a proposal that maybe we'd see a few draft regulations. Fill in the detail as you go! Just write on the pieces of paper, and then make the rules one day and change them the next day! That's a good way to do business, isn't it? The guts of this proposal is in bilateral deals between the Commonwealth and the states. How many of those have been done? How many do you think have been done, Deputy President? There are eight states and territories. Guess how many he has done? He has done none. He is on a duck. He has done no bilateral deals with the states and territories. So the guts and the promise of the environmental laws that were supposed to make it easier to get stuff done will never be delivered under this minister, Minister Watt, who is a good politician but seemingly a bad administrator, like the rest of this government, which has left Australia totally underprepared for this crisis.

I say to you, Deputy President, there is no guarantee about prosperity. There's no guarantee, because we need a lot of capital, and we need a lot of help if we're going to get this stuff out of the ground and we're going to actually make the most of our natural resources, whether they be renewable or fossil fuels. We need clear thinking, and we need clear laws where people know what they can and what they can't do. Right now, there's no chance of people having any idea what the hell they're allowed to do under this boondoggle of an environmental law system brought to you by Minister Watt.

The other thing we don't need is more taxes. If you entertain this crazy, populist view, this gimmicky idea, that more tax will bring you more energy or more tax will bring you more houses, then you may as well and go and live under a mushroom somewhere, because none of these things are going to do any good for the country. This just reminds me again of how badly we are serving the Australian people. No wonder people hate politicians.

Pauline Hanson (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This fuel crisis is a very loud wake-up call. Australia has been left at the mercy of global events. Our lack of influence on the world stage, our poor defence capabilities and our extreme dependence on global supply chains have been all exposed. Australia should never seek out wars, but we must always be prepared for them. It is now beyond any doubt that Australia wasn't prepared for the impact of the current conflict in the Middle East. This failure lies squarely at the feet of successive Labor and coalition governments. The warnings have been there for many years.

As much as the Greens and Labor demonise fossil fuels, Australia cannot function without them. Without petrol and diesel we cannot produce enough food, we cannot operate mines and we cannot get food from the regions to the cities. We can't get most goods or services we have taken for granted. If we don't have fuel, Australia literally stops. We literally begin to starve.

Any conflict involving Iran was inevitably going to threaten Australia's fuel supplies. Australian governments were told many times to increase our onshore reserves of fuel. They didn't. Our farmers, our miners, our truckies and every household or business which uses fuel are the victims of this neglect. Diesel prices have soared past $3 per litre. This adds to the cost of everything that moves on a truck. It adds to the cost of producing food and the cost of extracting our mineral and energy wealth. It's adding more to every household budget.

It didn't have to be this way. Increased onshore reserves of fuel would have given us some breathing room. They would have allowed us to cushion the impact of the war on fuel prices. Increased domestic production of oil would have further cushioned the impact. We have the resources, about 17 billion barrels worth around $1.7 trillion, which could be easily developed. We could make diesel out of coal or gas. Many other countries do this. But we've had no political leadership or will to make these resources work in the national interest.

We've had no long-term vision from the so-called major parties. One Nation has always put forward a vision for a self-sufficient Australia: a country which produces everything it needs right here in Australia, a country which gets a fair dinkum return for the exploitation of our mineral and energy wealth, a country which invests this return in nation-building infrastructure in Australian communities, a country which makes its own way and its own decisions. This fuel crisis is the wake-up call for a good old-fashioned streak of Australian nationalism. It's time to put Australians first.

One Nation calls on the government to cut the fuel excise by 100 per cent for three months or remove the GST on fuel. We call for the declaration of a national liquid fuel emergency to stop more price gouging and force fuels to regional and rural areas. We call for the development of plans to ration fuel in order to prioritise essential sectors like emergency services, food production, hospitals and defence.

These measures will help address the current crisis, but we need to go much further to make sure we're ready for the next crisis, because if you think this current crisis is bad then just wait and see what will happen to Australia's economy and trade if communist China makes good on its threat to attack Taiwan. We can fix this vulnerability, but we must act quickly. We must scrap net zero. Not only does it cost us trillions of dollars and cripple our economy, with no impact on global emissions increases; it prevents us from investing in development of our own sovereign fuel industry and creating the energy independence needed to keep Australians moving.

It was brought to my attention that, when the fuel excise is 52.6 cents per litre, the farmer pays that at the bowser and claims it back at BAS time, because it should never have been charged. When the excise is halved to 26.3 cents, the bowser price drops to 26.3 cents, but the amount the farmer can claim back also drops by exactly 26.3 cents automatically. The net result for a farmer is zero. The price paid for diesel to grow your food is exactly the same today as it was before today's announcement. But here is the part that makes it even worse: the farmer pays the full price, including the full excise component, the moment the diesel is delivered. That money leaves the farm account immediately. The correction only comes back when the quarterly BAS is lodged, meaning the government holds the farmer's money for up to three months before returning it. What we're doing is not looking after the farmers. They don't get the diesel rebate at all; that's only in the BAS statement. So our cost of farming is going to go up. The fuel excise is not a rebate to them because their tractors are not used on the roads. It's a shame. We don't get it right, do we?

Sean Bell (NSW, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Australians need to understand just how serious this moment is. The crisis we are in, that we're dealing with right now, has been caused by Labor's failure to prepare and Labor's failure to act swiftly. But this crisis is also only a drop in the ocean compared to what One Nation fears is coming down the pipeline. What we are seeing today is the result of the Albanese Labor government's choice to ignore the warning signs and waste precious time, and their choice to refuse to act until this crisis could no longer be denied. And they did deny it; they denied this crisis for a month, as One Nation warned them what was happening.

Now we are moving emergency legislation to respond to this crisis that they wanted to pretend wasn't happening. If not for us fighting them tooth and nail, forcing them to act, I don't know if we'd even be here today, moving this legislation. It was a complete failure of leadership. That delay, that denial and that incompetence matters. It matters because a month wasted matters. It's a month too late now for farmers who were unable to plant their crops on time or harvest their crops on time. It's a month too late for transport operators, trying to keep goods moving across this country, who are now facing exorbitant bills. It's a month too late for regional communities who are already being smashed by higher fuel costs. And that delay means they will be facing higher costs for longer. It's a month too late to shield Australians from the absolute worst of the fuel shock that has now flooded through this economy. If we'd acted sooner, the problems would have been less severe.

At One Nation, we saw this coming. We were the first to call for a cut to fuel excise because we understood that every extra cent on fuel hits families, small businesses, freight and food prices. We knew this. We advocated for this. We said this was the solution. It's good that the government is now adopting this, but they were too slow to act.

I will also point out that One Nation was the first to raise the fact that, off these soaring prices, the GST revenue is increasing up to $300 million a month. I will give credit to the state premiers who are now raising this and talking about it at National Cabinet to see if there's a way that they can look to forgo some of this revenue. They've raised that, and credit to them, because it is what we have been pointing out and what we have been calling for.

We have put forward commonsense steps early. Labor chose to ignore them until it was too late to stop the worst of the pain being inflicted. And the truth is simple: if our fuel is insecure, which it clearly is, that means our nation's food security is insecure. Farmers need diesel to plant, irrigate, fertilise, harvest and transport. Truckies need fuel to move supplies. Regional businesses need fuel to operate. Without reliable fuel, the whole chain starts to break. And the cost does not stay at the bowser; it hits supermarket shelves, family budgets and, ultimately, the entire nation's economy.

But, as serious as this crisis is, Australians must not fool themselves into thinking that this is the full extent of the danger, or that these measures that we're putting through today will solve the danger. They will not. What we're dealing with now is only a warning. The current disruption has exposed just how fragile Australia has become. We are too dependent on overseas supply chains. We are too slow to prepare for shocks. We do not have the resources. We can no longer make the fuel we need in our own country to protect ourselves from these predictable crises. And that is because of Labor's obsession with net zero, which is why One Nation's position is clear: we must scrap net zero now. Net zero is making Australia weaker, not stronger. It is making energy dearer, industry less competitive and our country more exposed. It punishes every sector that keeps Australia running, while forcing us towards unreliable systems and imported food—everything. And it leaves us completely dependent on other countries. That is not a responsible way to run a country. That is an act of national self-harm.

As Senator Hanson rightly points out, if we wind up having to deal with the conflict in Taiwan it will make the crisis we are dealing with now look like nothing. We are woefully unprepared to deal with that, and nothing we are doing today is going to help us prepare. So we must take steps to prepare. We must scrap net zero. We must move to more refining, proper storage of our fuel. If we don't act now, the next crisis will be infinitely worse.

Tyron Whitten (WA, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Let me begin by saying that we support the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Strategic Reserve) Bill 2026. But it should never have been necessary. The Labor and coalition governments of the past decade have failed to take fuel security seriously. This is a belated measure to safeguard Australia's fragile fuel supply. And let's be clear: this bill will not lower the price at the bowser, will not save small businesses that are already on the brink, and will not help families, tradies, couriers or anyone who relies on fuel. This is not a cost-of-living measure that will help the people of Australia fill their tanks. But it will potentially increase our fuel supplies.

The bill equips Export Finance Australia with new powers to underwrite strategic materials, like diesel, petrol, jet fuel, crude oil, fertilisers and other vulnerable commodities. These are sensible, targeted tools. With global prices swinging wildly, private industry is, understandably, not wanting to put their capital at risk. This bill will likely cost the Australian people when the war finishes. It should at least bolster Australia's supplies in the short term by purchasing the risk of importers and allowing them to bring in cargos that they otherwise might not have.

Yet support for this bill must be accompanied by blunt honesty. This legislation is necessary only because successive governments, Labor and coalition, have spectacularly failed to develop the very natural resources that should have made Australia a price maker, not a price taker. Who loves the Paris Agreement now? For decades we have sat on some of the world 's largest endowments of iron ore, coal, bauxite, lithium, rare earths and gas. High global prices have delivered windfall royalties. Yet we have not built the downstream capacity that would turn these royalties into sovereign capability. Refineries have closed under Labor and the coalition, while regulators have tied new projects up in green tape. Processing capacity remains offshore, overwhelmingly in the hands of one strategic competitor. We are a resource-rich nation. We have an entire continent to explore and develop.

So, what do we have after decades of Labor and coalition leadership? We have two refineries. We hold just 30 days worth of diesel and kerosene and 39 days of petrol—if you can find it. Wouldn't it be nice to have the recommended 90 days right now? Ninety per cent of our refined fuel is imported. We have governments who think in election cycles instead of thinking in terms of generations. This has left us with no ownership of our own future and resources. Successive governments have been adversaries of our industries rather than partners. After all, without the expertise of industry we have no extraction, but without our resources there is no industry.

The relationship should be a partnership, like we see abroad. Norway has worked with its industry and invested in its natural resources. As a result, their sovereign wealth fund is the envy of the world. They have secured the future retirement of their people, while here in Australia we have vastly more resources. We have squandered the opportunities.

When commodity prices surge we should be banking profits and expanding production. Instead, we are forced to use taxpayers' money to buy risk off private companies so we can supply the very commodities we once exported. We've become a quarry that imports back finished products at a premium. The explanatory memorandum itself admits that the reserve is a response to 'market volatility and geopolitical events'—market volatility that should benefit those holding resources.

This legislation would be unnecessary under a competent government. A serious long-term resources policy would have kept refineries open and fast-tracked critical minerals processing hubs. We should have used the boom years to build strategic stockpiles from domestic production, rather than supporting foreign purchases. Instead, we now legislate a bureaucratic workaround. None of this excuses delay. The bill before us is urgent. It is a responsible step to shore up supply. The review will ensure that these powers do not become a permanent crutch.

We support the bill because fuel in the tank is non-negotiable for national security, but at what cost? We will not pretend that this legislation is anything other than a second-best remedy for policy failure. The real test of this parliament will be: what do we do next? Will we slash the red and green tape that has strangled new exploration and refineries? Will we build the processing capacity that turns our resources into high-value Australian-made products? Will we be a partner of industry to get the most from our resources instead of a roadblock? Or will we simply congratulate ourselves for patching the holes in the ship? This bill deserves passage, but it's a long way short.

Tammy Tyrrell (Tasmania, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Straight up, I'll be supporting the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Strategic Reserve) Bill 2026, which will create strategic reserves for fuel and critical minerals and give the government the ability to better respond to future disruptions to supply chains.

Australians need to know the government can and will step in to protect us from supply problems. We shouldn't be punished for a stupid decision halfway across the world. Whilst the intent of this legislation is good, we need to be careful about how much executive power we are giving to ministers. We've seen when executive powers are exploited and abused during serious crises. During COVID, we saw former prime minister Scott Morrison abuse his role and swear himself into multiple ministries. That was wrong. We can't let legislation be abused like that again. No minister, including the Prime Minister, should have so much power, even during a crisis. We need to ensure we have the right checks and balances to protect us from these powers being abused in the future.

What I do like about this legislation is that it recognises that there are things other than oil and fuel that are strategically necessary and critical to Australia's safety and success. Just about anything can be dubbed a strategic material and eligible for support if it's vulnerable to supply chain disruptions. That's smart flexibility for the future.

The Minister for Resources should quickly use this power to recognise helium as a strategic mineral. Helium is totally and entirely vulnerable to supply chain disruptions. Last week I met with the Minister for Resources to advocate for helium to be added to the critical minerals list. Australia doesn't create any of its supply. We import all of our helium, which also goes through the Middle East to get here. Helium is a vital ingredient to make our MRI machines work. Without it, these machines simply stop, delaying diagnoses for cancer, strokes and heart disease. Right now, our hospitals are vulnerable to global supply disruptions entirely beyond our control. A domestic helium supply is fundamental to a resilient health system.

We also need natural helium for renewables and the technologies needed for the green energy transition. Natural helium is essential to the growth of Australia's tech sector. It's needed for data centres and quantum computers for its high-performance cooling and ultra-low temperatures. Projects like the Firmus AI data centre in Launceston show the highly skilled jobs and economic growth that are possible when we invest in advanced technology. We need those regional jobs. But those opportunities disappear without access to critical inputs.

Finally, helium is integral to the AUKUS agreement. We're committing billions of dollars to submarines and systems that rely on helium. If we're serious about a future made in Australia, natural helium must be part of the plan. We must reinstate helium onto the critical minerals list to unlock investment, fast-track projects and de-risk our domestic natural helium projects.

Since the conflict began, we've seen helium prices double. The crazy thing is that we know that Australia doesn't

need to pay this high price and bring helium in from other countries. We know we have enough helium in the ground to extract and provide for our own domestic use, as well as provide to the global market and make money. We know that we have it back home in Tassie, with enough for Australians and for the world.

I also want to make it clear that helium isn't like oil. It doesn't have cheaper alternatives, in the same way that oil and gas can be replaced by renewables. We also know we can use green hydrogen, which is extracted through hydrogen, not through mining for gas like in the past. That, right there, is a climate-friendly solution. We need helium for what it is—a critical mineral for our MRI machines, for our defence systems and for our tech to function.

So I welcome this legislation. It will give Australians peace of mind to know that the government will be able to step in and help the fuel cargo ships to keep coming and to shore up our supply. I also welcome that the legislation will allow for the resources minister to recognise helium as a critical mineral and help secure our sovereign domestic helium supply.

David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Strategic Reserve) Bill 2026. When supply chains are disrupted and prices spike, Australians expect their government to act—to step in where markets fall short and to protect the national interest. That's why this bill has my support, and I commend the government on bringing it forward so quickly. In times of heightened geopolitical uncertainty, there is a clear and legitimate role for government to stabilise outcomes and maintain supply of the things that we need.

But support for action is not the same as support for unchecked power. While I support the bill, like Senator Tyrrell I have concerns about the breadth of the powers it creates and the need for greater transparency in how these powers are used. When parliament extends broad authority to the executive, and when public money is used to underwrite private risk, Australians deserve to know how decisions are being made and how their interests are being protected.

This bill significantly expands the role of Export Finance Australia. As a result, EFA will be able to support the supply of fuel in addition to critical minerals and other strategic materials. I understand the rationale. In a crisis, importers may hesitate to purchase supply at elevated prices, fearing losses if conditions change. That hesitation can worsen shortages, and government stepping in to reduce that risk is a reasonable response. Fuel security matters, and, when supply is disrupted, the impacts flow through the entire economy, from transport costs to grocery prices, so there is no question that government has a responsibility to act.

But we must legislate carefully in this place, particularly when it comes to handing the executive even more power, and this bill raises three concerns. The first concern is about scope. This bill is not narrowly confined to an immediate crisis; it creates broad, ongoing powers with significant discretion and a wide definition of what constitutes a strategic material. Flexibility may be necessary, but, without clear guardrails, it risks becoming overreach. Australians should know when and why these powers are used and what limits apply.

My second concern is about transparency. If taxpayers are underwriting downside risk, there must be clarity about the terms of that support. Australians should not be asked to carry private risk without confidence that the public interest is being protected. If public money is exposed to losses, there should also be a mechanism to share in any upside.

My third concern is about the open ended provisions of these powers. There are significant changes to the role of government and to EFA's mandate. These warrant close scrutiny and timely reassessment. I welcome the fact that a review is written into the legislation; however, the first review should be brought forward from late 2029 to the end of 2027. For these reasons, I will support amendments to the bill that are proposed by the Greens.

This bill is, rightly, a short-term measure, but there is a broader issue that we must address. We are hopelessly exposed to fuel shocks. We are vulnerable to global disruptions, as was exposed after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine and, now, by this conflict in the Middle East. True resilience means reducing our exposure to these shocks by improving our energy security and our energy sovereignty. Electrification and the development of renewable energy have to be priorities, to reduce our reliance on imported, expensive, volatile liquid fuels.

While I support this bill, I would like to see more done to address the underlying issue, and that must be a project for many years to come. I urge the government to turn this massive challenge we face into an opportunity to turbocharge the work of electrification and ensure that Australians are not left behind in the transition. Australians want a government that can act decisively but also one that explains itself, accepts scrutiny and takes measures to address the underlying problem.

Don Farrell (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Trade and Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Can I thank my colleagues for their contribution to this debate. The Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Strategic Reserve) Bill gives Export Finance Australia new powers to help ensure Australia's preparedness to address supply chain disruptions. This includes fuel and other commodities such as fertiliser experiencing disruption as a result of market volatility and geopolitical events, including the current conflict in the Middle East.

The bill also gives legislative effect to the government's election commitment to develop and implement a new $1.2 billion Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve. The world needs critical minerals; Australia is lucky to have some of the largest deposits of critical minerals in the world. These are vital to everything from energy to medicine and advanced computing technologies. We must make the most of the opportunities to further develop our own critical minerals industries. It's in our national interest to do so. Importantly, these new financial tools will be provided for the Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve and are also available to help protect against other supply chain vulnerabilities, such as what we are experiencing now with fuel and fertiliser.

On behalf of the government, EFA will be able to underwrite the purchase of shiploads of fuel to get them here to Australia. It can provide insurance, derivatives, loans and other arrangements to make sure that those companies can go and get those cargoes for Australia and Australians. These new fuel security powers will put Australia in a strong position, securing fuel supplies where the cost may be prohibitive for private suppliers to source on commercial terms without government support. We will not wait for a crisis to get worse before doing what is needed. We are preparing for future challenges and getting ahead of the curve to shield Australians from the worst of this global uncertainty. Establishing these strategic powers is in our national interest and must pass the parliament today or tonight.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.