Mr COMBET (Charlton—Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency) (15:23): Let me state a couple of important facts at the outset. The policy of pricing carbon is the right policy for the future of this country; the second fact is that the Leader of the Opposition, who thinks he has got the next election in the bag—it is in the back pocket—cannot and will not repeal it. In fact, that claim is the most fraudulent claim of his mendacious and deceitful claims throughout this campaign. Mr Pyne interjecting— The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The Minister will resume his seat. I advise the Manager of Opposition Business that, if he continues to use that word, I will throw him from the chamber. Mr Pyne: Madam Deputy Speaker, I rise on a point of order. With great respect, it is a completely false assertion that the minister is making and it could not be orderly. The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat. The minister has the call. Mr COMBET: Let us just track over a little bit of the history to put some of this in context, and particularly this most mendacious and deceitful campaign that has been run by the Leader of the Opposition against carbon pricing, a measure which is in our economic and environmental national interest. Five years ago John Howard, the Leader of the Liberal Party, the Prime Minister of this country—this is an important anniversary— Mrs Bronwyn Bishop interjecting— The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member for Mackellar is warned! Mr COMBET: Five years ago, as a member of cabinet, John Howard committed this country to pricing carbon through an emissions trading scheme supported by the current Leader of the Opposition. In 2009, under Malcolm Turnbull's leadership, the member for Wentworth's leadership of the Liberal Party, the government and the coalition agreed on an emissions trading scheme to introduce a price on carbon in this country. If you are talking about deceit, if you are talking about integrity, if you are talking about betrayal—all issues raised by the Leader of the Opposition—then they rest right over there. It was in our national interest to pass that legislation at that time. It was agreed to by both major political parties in this country as being in our national interest, and the Leader of the Opposition betrayed his then leader over that policy issue. In a gutless act of political opportunism—he won by one vote—he defeated Malcolm Turnbull, the Leader of the Liberal Party, over that particular issue. Ever since, what we have seen has been deceit, fraud and mendacity with claim after claim after claim on this issue—deceit in relation to electricity prices and deceit in relation to the impact of bringing a carbon price into the economy—culminating in that most deceitful of claims that the Leader of the Opposition intends to repeal this particular measure which is in our interest. Dr Jensen interjecting— The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order, the member for Tangney! Mr COMBET: This country has an obligation internationally to play a fair part in efforts to tackle climate change and cut greenhouse gas emissions. We will have obligations to do so—to cut in absolute terms our emissions from 2020—and there are supposedly bipartisan pledges to cut emissions through to 2020 by at least five per cent on the levels of 2000. Dr Jensen interjecting— The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member for Tangney is warned! Mr COMBET: The Leader of the Opposition has gone around attacking scientists and economists and making false claims—claim after claim. He said hundreds of thousands of jobs will go. He stood before pensioners and lied to them about the impact of carbon pricing— The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The minister will withdraw. Mr COMBET: I withdraw. He stood in front of pensioners—in one of the most gutless things you could ever do—terrifying them, with no sound basis for doing so. And now that the carbon price has been in for six weeks, what are we finding? Every single claim is wrong. The destruction of the coal industry—wrong, false and deceitful. The loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs—wrong, false and deceitful. The impact on electricity prices—wrong, false and deceitful. The Leader of the Opposition sat there and watched electricity prices go up by an average of 50 per cent over the last three years and another eight or nine per cent due to network costs in each jurisdiction around the country this year—and that is not the end of the world. They falsely attribute electricity price increases all to carbon. Every single claim that the Leader of the Opposition has made in relation to this issue is false, deceitful and cannot be relied upon. It is the most pure political opportunism that you could possibly imagine. Every living Liberal Party leader, including the member for Warringah, has supported carbon pricing. It is right for this country and that is why the Leader of the Opposition, who thinks he has got the next election in the bag, cannot and will not repeal it—and that is the most fraudulent claim of his of all.