My question is to the Minister for Industry and Innovation, Senator Ayres. The Albanese government today introduced legislation in the other place to establish a domestic gas reservation, a landmark Labor reform. Minister, how will Labor's gas reservation reform deliver more affordable gas for Australian businesses?

Order! Senator Ayres, I have not called you; I'm waiting for order. Order! I remind senators, particularly on my left—

Excuse me, Senator McKenzie and Senator Cash. I remind senators that Senator Ghosh has the right to put his question in silence. Minister Ayres.

I do want to thank Senator Ghosh for that question. He is from the great state of Western Australia, which has had a gas reservation scheme in place since 2006. I do remember—I'm old enough to remember—the kind of wild campaign that was run against that gas reservation at that time. It has been of immense benefit to Western Australia that that scheme has been in place, and this Albanese government will deliver that benefit for all of Australia.

Earlier today, my friend the Minister for Resources, Madeleine King, introduced legislation for the domestic gas reservation. It is a landmark Labor reform that will ensure that Australia's resources are used to benefit Australia and Australians. It will deliver affordable gas for Australians in their homes, for our businesses and for our households. It will help shield the Australian economy from global price shocks in uncertain times. It will see manufacturing firms invest in and create good, new blue-collar jobs.

In my work before I came into this parliament, I saw manufacturing firm after manufacturing firm in regional Australia close because of high gas prices. The best time to introduce this scheme would have been in the year 2000, as Australian industry was exposed to the international price of gas. The only time that we can deliver is now—for this parliament to deliver Australian gas for Australian industry, with downward pressure on prices, for blue-collar jobs and heavy industry, to make Australia stronger.

Senator Ghosh, first supplementary.

The Albanese Labor government has been working steadily on this reform to design a system that reserves Australian gas for Australians. How will a domestic gas reservation deliver clear investment signals for industry and benefit the Australian manufacturing sector?

Again, I thank Senator Ghosh for that question. It is described by industry as the most significant reform to the nation's gas market in a generation—significant economic reform. It will deliver long-term contracts and lower cost gas. That means long-term confidence and low-cost gas as a competitive advantage for Australian industry, and that confidence means industrial investment and good blue-collar jobs in regional Australia.

It's already having an impact. Australia's only producer of phosphate fertilisers, Phosphate Hill in north-west Queensland, last year had no buyers. As a result of this government's intervention in the Glencore Mount Isa smelter and this government's announcement of the orderly process towards a gas reservation, there were multiple buyers overnight, and that facility has been sold and continues to operate for the benefit of Australia's— (Time expired)

Senator Ghosh, second supplementary?

The Albanese Labor government is undertaking significant, difficult and important reform to deliver an energy system that works for Australians. What parts of industry, the manufacturing sector and Australia's regional communities would be at risk without this reform?

Well, it's certainly true that this reform is significant. It's necessarily complex, because it's retrofitting a reservation on a reform that should have been done in the early 2000s. But what is simple is this: this reform will deliver cheaper gas for Australia—for Australian industry and Australians.

I have been encouraged by the approach that colleagues across almost all of the parliament have taken on this issue. We will work across the parliament to deliver this reform, because it is in Australia's interest that we have a gas reservation policy in place. It will benefit, overwhelmingly, heavy industry and make Australia stronger in terms of our industries and our regional economies. There is one group—the sort of fake battlers over there, draped in orange, in One Nation—who have declared that they are opposed to this. We will work with everybody across the parliament to deliver this reform, because it's in— (Time expired)