Anne Webster
Mallee · National Party · Australia
“The government's first duty is to protect its citizens and, arguably, its most vulnerable citizens—in this case, children. Today that duty extends into a digital world, where the playground has actually moved online and where too often it is unpoliced and unsafe.”
“We know that, despite the ban, large numbers of children are still accessing these platforms because enforcement has been weak and the regulator has not been given the tools it needs.”
“They worry about exposure to violent content; harmful algorithms; cyberbullying; scams; predatory, paedophilic behaviour; and the relentless pressure that social media can place on young people's mental health. These concerns are real, and they deserve to be taken seriously.”
“For many young Australians, social media is where they access news, educational content and creative learning. It's where they stay connected with friends and family. It is where they participate in their communities and engage in public debate.”
“My constituent asks that there be some sort of agency or protocol where these accounts can be collated, investigated and closed where applicable.”
“Labor rejected it and then, in the 2024 budget, accepted it. We pledged in June 2024 that we would deliver the under-16s social media ban, which Labor, thankfully, copied.”
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“The migration system was not well designed for regional labour realities. Employers described the system as slow, complex, costly and highly bureaucratic. Small and regional businesses were especially disadvantaged compared to large city employers. Existing safeguards were failing too many workers. Attraction without retention is a revolving door, and reform should prioritise transparency, fairness, regional needs and long-term settlement. Key findings of the 2024 report of the Joint Standing Committee on Migration, Migration, p athway to n ation b uilding , showed that migration is a nation-building tool that needs a long-term, long-range strategy, not a piecemeal policy. Migration should strengthen Australia's skills base and economic capacity. Migration policy must help sustain regional population and workforce needs.”
“Workforce shortages were structural, not temporary, and regional industries—including agriculture, horticulture, food processing, health, aged care, transport and hospitality—were facing acute labour shortages. Employers consistently reported they could not fill roles locally, even after advertising widely. Labour shortages were a constraint on business viability, productivity and regional economic growth. In many regions, migration wasn't optional but essential. Regional communities were increasingly reliant on migrant labour to sustain essential industries. Witnesses emphasised that many sectors could not operate without migrant workers. Migrants were not only filling low skilled seasonal jobs; they were also filling critical skilled roles as nurses, doctors, mechanics, food processing specialists and farm supervisors.”
“They are a local success story, with a $116 million turnaround last year and record sales—the best almond prices they have ever received. I come to this debate familiar with the migration portfolio area, having been the Deputy Chair of the Joint Standing Committee on Migration in the 47th Parliament. I worked closely, in a healthy and bipartisan way, with the then-chair and now retired Labor member for Calwell, Maria Vamvakinou. I was proud to take the migration committee for a public hearing in Robinvale, in my electorate, in May 2023 to contribute to the committee's report, M igration, p athway to n ation b uilding . We met with the council for the Robinvale area, the Swan Hill Rural City Council, and with horticultural businesses and associations. Key themes we heard in that hearing were the following.”
“I rise this afternoon to speak about the Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025. As the member for Mallee and the shadow minister for regional development, I emphasise how agriculture—particularly horticulture in Mallee—relies on migrant workers. Workforce shortages are a fact of life in regional Australia, and Mallee is no exception. Businesses in Sunraysia—in Mildura, Robinvale and Swan Hill—and even further south in the Wimmera, in Horsham and beyond, need migrant workers, especially during seasonal peaks in workload. Without these migrant workers, our region would not be the productive powerhouse that it is. Speaking of which, tonight, at the Australian Export Awards, Select Harvests from Wemen are up for the Regional Exporter award for 2025. They are a finalist, and I will be there cheering them on.”
“Creativity does not stop at the edge of a capital city. We have world-class talent right across this country. We have breathtaking landscapes, vibrant communities and compelling stories that deserve a platform. Transparency ensures that that opportunity is spread, not concentrated. These are commonsense amendments. They strengthen accountability, ensure transparency, empower regional Australians and improve this bill without adding unnecessary burden on industry. I commend the amendments to the House and urge the members to support clear, open reporting so that all Australians, from the cities to the bush, benefit from the streaming and screen industries of the future—and I certainly hope that the Leader of the House supports these amendments.”
“When companies operate in Australia, earn revenue in Australia and benefit from Australian audiences, they should be accountable to all Australians. And I emphasise that this is not red tape. This is not imposing any new financial burden on platforms. They already track expenditure. My amendment simply requires them to share where it is spent and requires the regulator and the minister to ensure those reports see the light of day. Australian content is more than entertainment; it is how we see ourselves, how our children understand their place in the world and how we preserve our unique culture in the face of overwhelming global media dominance. But, if Australian content is to be truly national, genuinely reflective of who we are, then regional and remote Australians must not be left behind.”
“They deserve to see themselves represented not just on-screen but in the opportunities created behind the camera. This amendment ensures that, when platforms spend their Australian content dollars, we will finally know whether regional Australians are included. My second amendment creates section 121FZOA, which requires ACMA to publish each annual expenditure report and requires the minister to table those reports in both houses of parliament within 15 sitting days. Sunlight is a powerful disinfectant. If streaming platforms are meeting their obligations, good—let the country see it. If they are not, then parliament, industry and the public should know. Transparency should not be optional. It should not be hidden behind bureaucracy.”
“It requires streaming services, when they report their annual Australian program expenditure, to tell us where in Australia that money was spent—not vaguely, not selectively, but clearly and consistently—across the ABS remoteness categories, firstly major cities and then inner regional, outer regional, remote and very remote Australia. This matters. Right now, we have no line of sight into whether Netflix, Stan, Disney +, Amazon and others are genuinely investing across the nation. We do not know whether regional creators, actors, crews and production companies, from Mildura to Mount Isa, from Shepparton to Alice Springs, are being given the opportunity to be part of this industry. Without transparency, there is no accountability. Regional Australians contribute to our culture, our creativity and our economy.”
“(2) The Minister must cause a copy of the report to be tabled in each House of the Parliament within 15 sitting days of that House after the Minister receives the report, upon which time it must be published on the ACMA website. This parliament is being asked to set the rules for a new era in Australian storytelling. For the first time, global streaming giants will have obligations to invest meaningfully in Australian content. This is welcome. But unless this parliament insists on proper transparency, we will never know whether those investments are genuinely supporting the breadth of Australia—not just the big cities, not just the same postcodes but all Australians wherever they live. My amendments are simple, practical and vital—transparency on where money is actually spent. My first amendment inserts subsection 121FZO(1)(1A).”
“by leave—I move opposition amendments (1) and (2) on sheet 2 together: (1) Schedule 1, item 3, page 25 (after line 3), after subsection 121FZO(1), insert: (1A) To the extent that the report relates to the service's total program expenditure for Australia for the year of the report, the report must provide information about where that expenditure was incurred by reference to the following: (a) major cities of Australia; (b) inner regional Australia; (c) outer regional Australia; (d) remote Australia; (e) very remote Australia. (2) Schedule 1, item 3, page 25 (after line 7), after section 121FZO, insert: 121FZOA Publication of annual report (1) As soon as practicable after receiving a report under subsection 121FZO(1), the ACMA must give a copy of the report to the Minister.”
“The Age reported in early September: Thousands of Victorians with profound disabilities face the prospect of eviction from their group homes and the loss of carers they have relied on for years due to a funding stand-off between private providers, the state and the federal government. Where is the minister responsible for this failed handover of accommodation and arrangements? This needs urgent attention.”
“I highlight an urgent situation for the Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme to address concerning specialist disability accommodation potentially ceasing to exist by 31 December, leaving vulnerable Australians homeless. Noreen is a constituent in my electorate of Mallee and is in her mid-80s. Noreen's son lives in a specialist disability accommodation service within my electorate. Noreen's son faces eviction from his specialist accommodation from 1 January due to the Commonwealth squabbling with the Victorian government, whose transitional funding ends this year for those like Noreen's son, who will soon rely exclusively on the NDIS for funding for their home—funding that doesn't go far enough for specialist homes. This feels like the government's aged-care bungling all over again.”
“Even though there is apparently a consultation until February, we know that, in Victoria, it means nothing. VicGrid attempted, earlier this month, to access properties at Greens Creek and Bunguluke, in my electorate, using powers the Victorian Labor government energy minister Lily D'Ambrosio gave them. Farmers are starting harvest very shortly. They don't have time to be protesting, but they are because this means so much to them—farmers like Rod Reading and Greg Bladwin, who spoke with Wimmera Mallee News earlier this week about how they face compulsory access from VicGrid in the near future. This is about Australian stories, and all of Australia needs to hear Australian stories—whether it's documentaries, whether it's creative films—and streaming platforms need to invest in Australian stories.”
“Let me tell you a few Australian stories streaming platforms might want to look into to fill their Australian content quotas. Regions are out of sight, out of mind for the Albanese Labor government. The radical pursuit of net zero at all costs railroading regional communities—Victorian Labor government said, without offshore wind, 70 per cent of Victorian farmland would be needed. Can you imagine the documentary—the headline? It would play potentially all over the world—railroading of farmers without social licence. On Monday 24 November, the Victorian government issued a draft renewable energy zone order for five onshore renewable energy zones, including several in my electorate. What we know is that, under Victorian Labor, the word 'draft' actually means 'final'.”
“That figure rose to $868,000 in 2022 but is still far short of its revenue and impact on Australian society. Netflix's tax avoidance smarts aren't limited to Australia. In the USA, during the life of the Trump administration, Netflix paid US$81 million in corporate tax, despite earning $10.5 billion over that period. We've seen the news in the last 24 hours of US officials warning the Commonwealth we could be hit with more tariffs if we keep pushing on the media bargaining incentive—what was the media bargaining code under the coalition government—on the social media bans for under 16s, on this initiative to require Australian content and on more. As elected representatives of Australians as the Australian parliament, it is now our sovereign right and duty to act in the national interest.”
“I spoke on WIN News across regional Australia last night, including—I am excited to say again—in Mildura, about streaming platforms, how they minimise their tax in Australia and how commercial broadcasters are not on a level playing field. I'll repeat what I said in August 2024 for the benefit of the House. I haven't had time to update the figures, but this is the tilted playing field we operate in—this blurred online media market space. Apple, who have streaming platform Apple TV, who earned $9.3 billion on Australian shores in the most recent reporting year I have to hand, paid just $137.3 million in tax, which was only 1.5 per cent of their Australian revenues. In 2018, Netflix reportedly had an effective tax rate of 0.05 per cent in Australia, despite $1 billion in revenue, and paid just $342,000 in tax.”
“I don't have one single television journalist based in Mallee—which, I might remind viewers, is Victoria's largest land electorate, a third the size of Victoria. We need to see ourselves on screen and in our news services, but in streaming services as well. Of course, the investment this bill refers to is not for news or sport but for Australian creative content, including documentaries and movies. Having said that, I give a shout-out to the WIN network who, as of Monday this week, resumed news bulletins in Sunraysia, my hometown of Mildura and in Griffith in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area. It is wonderful to see ourselves on TV news again.”
“How can we, Australian parliamentarians, in good conscience say to Australian broadcasters, 'We'll keep you under red tape but not apply the same or similar red tape to others who broadcast in Australia'? These international broadcasters are swallowing up advertising revenue that keeps Australian broadcasters on air. For example, international broadcasters can run gambling advertising that Australian broadcasters cannot, particularly at times of match play. As I said earlier, we Nationals know all too well about market failure and the need for government to intervene, as we see it all too often in regional Australia. I publicly stated in August that we have a declining regional media and lack of journalists.”
“Critically, regulation hasn't caught up to the fact that we have strictly regulated the Australian broadcasters while regulation does not effectively touch the international broadcasters such as those this bill seeks to regulate. Australia's media is not a free market. This is a failed market, and the Nationals know about interventions in market failure situations all too well, as we see the need for it time and time again in regional Australia. Free-to-air television broadcasters face many barriers. There are laws and rules that apply to our commercial broadcasters that do not apply to offshore based, streaming, video-on-demand providers. SBODs, or streamers, are free to use the digital airwaves—so to speak—as they wish with no barriers. The bill is an opening step in changing that.”
“That is why—and I foreshadow—I will be moving an amendment to ensure transparency on how much of the Australian production proposed through this bill will actually occur in regional Australia. Let's remember the regulatory space we have here. Our media regulations were made during the 20th century of television towers and antennas on roofs. Now, builders do not even put antennas on house builds. This is the 21st century, and regulation has not caught up to the reality where many Australians—if not the majority—are digesting the bulk of their news and entertainment over the internet through the NBN broadband internet, 5G, 4G or whatever else they use.”
“I rise as the first shadow minister for regional communications in Australia—yet another principled position the Nationals took to ensure that, in the 21st century, there is a continuous focus on regional connectivity. This bill mandates the production of Australian content, and nothing is more Australian than regional Australia. From The F lying Doctors , filmed in my electorate of Mallee at Minyip, to M ad Max , Crocodile Dundee and The Adventures of Priscilla , Queen of the Desert , the star of the show has been the people and the landscapes of regional Australia. As we see the capital cities grow at breakneck pace under Labor governments—federal and state—I come to this debate with an unashamed and strong emphasis on regional Australians.”
“One of the tour operators ferried people to a restaurant and another purchased food for 30 people! … and the next morning provided a tea and coffee urn. Labor's mismanagement of the flight arrangements to these remote islands yet again highlights this government's inability to manage critical aviation lifelines for our most isolated Australians. The ACCC has repeatedly warned of the dangers of our concentrated airline market—sky-high fares on regional routes, frequent cancellations and reduced reliability. The human cost is devastating: Mildura's patients missing critical medical appointments in Melbourne, businesses struggling to attract staff and families separated by unaffordable flights. These services are not a luxury. They are essential. (Time expired)”
“This chaotic switchover risked stranding remote communities, disrupted essential freight and passenger links and has had financial implications for small island businesses who have contacted me. One stakeholder told me recently about events on Monday 17 November: … weather stopped Qantas departing, but then all the passengers were effectively left without accommodation. They used to get sent to the ABF accommodation on the island, but this time.. nothing. … sadly- large groups of people, who just experienced a world event of the crab spawning, nature's greatest migration, will only talk about Christmas Island and being delayed, no food at the airport (as Commonwealth won't sign a lease with a supplier) with no accommodation, transport and pouring rain.”
“The government has committed up to $160 million to prop up Rex in administration, yet it remains utterly unable to guarantee ongoing regional services, affordability for passengers or even whether regional creditors, including airports like Mildura, will ever be paid. Instead, we have a Commonwealth grant program, where creditors might hope to be paid. Under Labor, programs designed to support regional airlines with capital upgrades and security screening have been withdrawn without any explanation. And let us not forget how this Labor government has botched the transition of air services for Australia's island territories, including the handover from Virgin Australia to Qantas for Christmas and Cocos (Keeling) Islands, which commenced only on 3 November 2025 after Virgin services ended on 31 October.”
“This duopoly strangles competition, drives up fares and abandons regional routes to the whims of big city boardrooms. Not only this; also under Labor's watch, major airlines have ruthlessly centralised activities, withdrawing staff, service provision and investment from the regions. Qantas is closing bases and maintenance facilities in Mildura, Tamworth, Hobart and Canberra. In Mildura, Qantas confirmed on 1 October 2025 that it would shut its longstanding pilot and cabin crew base, forcing dozens of loyal local workers, many with decades of service, to relocate to Melbourne, Sydney or Brisbane or lose their jobs. This is not progress. It is the deliberate hollowing out of regional Australia. As I said directly to Qantas Link, this decision is a profound insult to the Sunraysia community that has supported Qantas for generations.”
“Air travel is part and parcel of life in regional Australia. My home town of Mildura is the most remote regional centre in Victoria. It is more than six hours drive from Melbourne and almost 4½ hours drive from Adelaide. Sunraysia's geographical isolation means that there are many instances where road travel takes far too long, is just not appropriate and, can I say, dangerous. Air travel is essential not least to access health care and to visit family and friends but also as a connector and driver for our regional businesses and economies. Under this Labor government, two regional airlines, Bonza and Regional Express, have collapsed, leaving the domestic aviation sector more concentrated than ever. Nationally, just two airline groups, Qantas and Virgin, now represent 98.3 per cent of the market, according to the latest data.”
“I move: That this House: (1) notes that: (a) under the Government two regional airlines have collapsed and the domestic aviation sector has become more concentrated with just two airline groups representing 98.3 per cent of the market; (b) major airlines have centralised activities, withdrawing staff, service provision and investment from the regions, closing bases and maintenance facilities in Mildura, Tamworth, Hobart and Canberra; (c) the Government has committed up to $160 million to extend the Regional Express airline in administration but remains unable to guarantee regional services or affordability, nor whether regional creditors will be paid; (d) programs to support regional airlines investing in capital upgrades and security screening services have been withdrawn; and (e) the Government has botched the transition of air services for Australia's island territories; and (2) calls upon the Government to ensure regional Australians retain access to competitive, affordable, sustainable and safe aviation services.”
“Given that the ACCC's remit is to promote competition, protect consumers, support fair trading and regulate national infrastructure to make markets work for everyone, why propose changes to network charges that hinge on a hypothetical rather than reality and potentially reduce competition? It makes no sense to me. Two submissions to the inquiry—Aussie Broadband and Venture Insights—model that the draft determination equates to a 75.6 per cent reduction in the fixed termination rate, which they say would disproportionately hit fixed-only providers and erode competition. The size of the proposed fee reduction and the speed at which it would be implemented poses a significant threat—a threat large enough to compromise business viability and trigger flight from the market. I highlight that these recommendations— (Time expired)”
“Communities that are most at risk of being impacted by the ACCC's draft proposal are—and I know this will shock the House!—those in regional and remote areas— An honourable member: There's a theme there. there is theme—where there is limited redundancy in the system. I am concerned about what this ruling could mean for competition. While the ruling theoretically entices new market entrants, it jeopardises the viability of existing smaller operators that have footprints and staff in Australia already. Australia has, arguably, the most concentrated telecommunications market in the developed world.”
“I turn now to the text of the motion that my colleague has brought and to the ACCC's draft determination on declared voice interconnection services, including the fixed terminating access service, FTAS; the fixed originating access service, FOAS; and the mobile terminating access service, MTAS. As explained by the shadow minister for communications, the ACCC's determination varies the fees charged when a customer on one telecommunications network calls a customer on another for the handover of that call. Stakeholders, including fixed-only providers, have expressed concern that the ACCC's proposed reductions could undermine service continuity, competition and investment in these essential networks.”
“That is because they don't have any mobile phone service. The point is often overlooked, but it is not lost on people who live in the regions. Thankfully, redundancy has been built into the telecommunications system for the most part, due to legislative provisions like the universal service obligation and the statutory infrastructure provider regime, to ensure minimum service levels for fixed voice and high-speed broadband. The Nationals are acutely aware of the urgent need to update the USO and the SIP for this day and age, and landlines currently remain vital for regional connectivity.”
“They give people the ability to work or run a business, access health care and essential government services, and maintain social connection. Affordable fixed-line voice services—in other words, landline services—may no longer rely on the copper wiring, but the fixed voice services remain critically important. Mobile connectivity remains sketchy at best in large swathes of regional Australia, and it has been made worse by this Labor government's abysmal failure to manage the 3G network shutdown effectively. While the country has been rightly shocked at the devastatingly tragic outcomes of Optus's recent triple 0 outage—and I hear there has been another one this afternoon—I feel compelled to highlight the fact that large parts of our vast country have no access to triple 0 at all on their mobile phones.”
“(): I second the motion. I spoke recently in this House about Christine from Cumnock in New South Wales, who had to travel an additional kilometre after a car accident to call triple 0 on a landline at a nearby house because she didn't have mobile phone reception. I also mentioned Joe from Meckering in Western Australia, who called in while I was on a Perth radio station, saying he has regular visitors at his home on the transcontinental highway asking to use his landline because, contrary to network indications, there is no mobile phone reception on his section of the highway. Like it or not, landline services remain essential to connectivity in regional Australia. They enable people to access emergency services in times of need.”
“In terms of how this government has betrayed those who live in the regions, I have to talk about the 3G shutdown. What a debacle! Twelve months ago, on this government's watch, the 3G shutdown occurred. Telstra, Optus, TPG—everybody was involved, but the minister approved the shutdown. The problem was that the promise was made that there would be no harm done and everybody would be fine. The reality is that many, many people—we don't know how many—have no service. They cannot connect. Forget about calling triple 0. That is absolutely not available. People are now putting Starlink on their roofs and finding other ways. They're going back to ham radios—is that what we call the ones truckies use, ham radios? You know what I'm talking about.”
“I will be very interested to see what the consultation paper—and we called for it to be extended, because it was brought out under the cover of darkness; nobody knew that this consultation was taking place until this last week. It is an incredibly ridiculous notion—to make people in the regions just simply drive slower, rather than expending money on roads. On that point, I would speak to the minister again, although she has left the chamber, and say that, while Labor continually say that they have doubled the dollars to Roads to Recovery, the fact of the matter is that it hasn't happened yet. Like everything, we have a great announcement, but where's the follow-through? The money has not happened. The roads are still broken. And everybody in regional Australia knows it.”
“And, thirdly, it's so that emissions from fuel consumption will be lower. Now, seriously! I've heard them say, 'This is not a climate change issue at all.' I'm sorry—as I have said several times this week, this has the Minister for Climate Change and Energy's fingerprints all over it. What this consultation actually shows is that the cost to those who live in the regions is going to be about slower travel time. Really? Is that actually accurate? Yes. Parents will take longer to get their kids to school. Parents will take longer to get their kids to sport. Parents will take longer to take their children to the doctor. This is the cost of this ridiculous notion. Now, I have spoken to the member for Riverina about this very consultation, which, I would like to clearly say, we did not implement, because it is so foolish.”
“It has been highly entertaining, listening to the minister—my counterpart, in point of fact. I first want to address how this government is devastating regional communities—effectively, abandoning regional communities. I particularly want to point out that the minister's statement regarding the lowering of default speed limits is actually not accurate. I have in front of me the department of infrastructure consultation that we are referring to, which clearly says that—as to this consultation on potentially lowering the default speed limit on sealed and unsealed regional roads which are unmarked—one of the benefits is to reduce fatalities. Nobody is going to dispute that we all want to see fatalities reduced. Also it's to reduce fuel consumption costs. I didn't know they cared!”
“I'm looking forward to being out at Nichols Point again on Friday morning, promoting preventive heart health and men's health in Sunraysia.”
“Another Mildura local taken too soon was Scott Umback, lost in 2019 of a heart attack, aged just 42. His wife, Katrina Umback, is a passionate and driven advocate for improving access to preventive care for men to ensure others do not experience the same loss she and her boys have endured. Katrina teamed up with La Trobe University to secure a Medical Research Future Fund grant to research and co-design a kit for rural Australians to check their heart health at home. The kit features portable devices for measuring blood pressure, fasting glucose and cholesterol. Katrina says: This study is a gamechanger for rural and regional Australians, especially those in a city like Mildura, with no Catheterisation Lab or accessible heart disease screening programs.”
“It's more than just a golf day; it's a testament to what a small community can achieve when they come together with purpose. The team's efforts were recently recognised with a nomination for a Movember award. I had the pleasure of attending this magnificent charity event for the first time last year, in my previous role as the shadow minister for regional health. I promoted preventive health measures in my electorate, where we have higher morbidity and mortality rates from preventable diseases. I assisted this year by facilitating provision of free health checks via self-service machines provided by SiSU Health. Novo Nordisk has generously funded the provision of these free health checks. The public will be able to come and access a health check even if they are not participating in the golf day—good news for all the wives, perhaps.”
“This Friday, 7 November, the beautiful Riverside Golf Club in Nichols Point, in my electorate of Mallee, will host the Stephen Crawford Memorial Golf Day. The event is run by the local community, for local tradies and others, supporting men's health and the Movember Foundation. The golf day, proudly supported by Total Tools Mildura, honours Stephen Crawford, taken too soon by bowel cancer in February 2022. Since the first golf day in 2021, this event has raised more than $100,000 for the Movember Foundation. The Stephen Crawford Memorial Golf Day honours a Total Tools team member's husband, and quickly became something much bigger. Total Tools and the team saw an opportunity to make a real community impact, and they have.”
“On this Melbourne Cup Day, Labor has a shocking record for picking winners, and I won't apologise for holding this Labor government accountable so we get this right in the national interest. The last thing Australia needs is for Labor to claim they have a winner because they hobbled the productivity horses. Basically, this legislation can only be described as a 6-7.”
“Justice Natalie Charlesworth found that the EDO's legal team disgracefully manipulated and coached a number of witnesses and fabricated evidence in the case, and their claims were so lacking in integrity that no weight could be placed on them. Given Labor's form with the EDO, it is a worry that it might enable a potentially activist new National Environmental Protection Agency, if the vetting process isn't up to scratch, to be unaccountable to the minister. As one major stakeholder told me on Friday, constant unjustified lawfare is the No. 1 enemy of industry, with endless lawsuits and stop-work orders making industry unviable. We need to be vigilant when the prospect is a Labor-Greens slapdash deal before Christmas. The last thing Australian productivity and job-creating businesses need is more green tape, not less.”
“The construction on the Burrup Peninsula is a marvel to see, and it's an economic miracle that development has proceeded given the lawfare engaged in by groups like the disgraced Environmental Defenders Office, which Labor to this day continues to fund with taxpayer money. What a disgrace—an estimated $15 million by the end of this decade. Labor has not fully investigated the significant funding that the EDO receives from donors around the world and whether its connections to any of a vast network of international donors have breached Australia's foreign interference laws. In January 2024, the Federal Court outed the EDO for its conduct and activities in a Federal Court case relating to Santos's pursuit of its Barossa gas pipeline project—the infamous songlines case.”
“They want hybrids or diesel vehicles, particularly the latter in regional Australia. We need to fully investigate biofuels, not just for our aviation sector but as a potential addition or even substitute for petrol or diesel. Tractors, harvesters, mining machinery and many more types of productivity-driving machinery cannot abide the glorious coming of Bowen's batteries. Productivity depends on fuel, and we have dangerously small amounts of it on shore. Coalition governments understand productivity and job creation, and the resources sector is the economic golden goose in Western Australia that delivers them marvellous royalties and relative economic security.”
“I have to add that we also have a serious fuel security problem. Productivity is one thing; our national security is another, and that is why a workable, national interest test through this legislation is critical. Australia's fuel reserves are critically low, with a reported 28 days of petrol left, according to reports last month, and just one months worth of jet fuel or diesel in storage. Leaving aside the existing contractual arrangements for fuel exports, we need to ensure we have a domestic fuel supply chain. Much as Minister Bowen might cross his fingers and hope otherwise while he throws eye-watering amounts of subsidies at Australians who can already afford to buy an EV, the reality is EV take-up targets will not be met. Labor are absolutely hopeless at picking winners. Consumer demand is not enticed by the subsidies.”
“That's why, when she was Minister for the Environment, the now leader of the opposition commissioned the Samuel review in 2020—to frame the debate. The home truths about the need to reform environmental laws in the name of productivity and jobs have claimed one minister, Minister Plibersek, and now have the current minister for the environment and water, Minister Watt, hoping he doesn't get rolled by a Labor premier like Premier Cook in Western Australia—as his predecessor did. I was in Western Australia last month, and, let me tell you, they are very happy that the resources industry is getting a fair go. A woman in Broome, quite unprompted, urged me to crack on with Woodside opening up development in the state. She believes it will deliver more jobs and opportunities for all Western Australians.”
“We must get the balance right between achieving environmental outcomes, social licence and keeping farmland in production. Well, how sensible is that! I want to zero in on key phrases there that get lip-service from those opposite: social licence and genuine consultation. Labor's track record on this front is absolutely abysmal. Labor's version of consultation on their reckless rollout of renewables is a toot of the horn, if you're lucky, before the policy bulldozer comes rolling through your gate and onto your property—and farmers in my electorate know this. Make no mistake. We need to reform the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. As a coalition of parties that represents and listens to regional committees, small businesses and Australian businesses, the coalition are the best agents to reform the act.”
“It's regional Australians, their concerns about the environment set to one side, with the minister wielding enhanced powers to sideline proper planning processes in order to force transmission lines, wind turbines and blanket solar panels onto regional communities. And that's without adding in mining. I refer again to the NFF statement on 30 October. They say: Concepts like bioregional planning, offsets, net gain and 'unacceptable impact' tests need to be properly explained and practically tested. Otherwise, we risk creating confusion and unintended consequences. Further, we are very concerned about fast-tracking renewables, critical minerals or housing developments that could target agricultural land. Any push for projects impacting agriculture must come with genuine consultation with farmers and regional communities.”
“When it comes to the environment in Mallee, we have seen the environment thrown under the bus because of Labor's reckless renewables-only energy approach to reach unattainable energy targets, creating immense environmental, social and economic harm—and I've spoken to two farmers this evening about this very fact. In my home state of Victoria, in the electorate of Mallee, we have seen community concerns about the environment tossed to one side because the Allan Labor government—who are delusional about the future of gas in our energy mix—claim there's no gas onshore. They gaslight Victorians that it's renewables or bust. It isn't. And who's busting under Labor?”