Mr TAYLOR (Hume—Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction) (16:09): It's a pleasure to speak on this motion moved by the member for Shortland. He is right to say that the report that came out at 6 pm last night is an important report. There is no doubt about that. It underscores the point that countries around the world, including Australia, need to do their bit to bring down emissions. But it's going to require a globally coordinated effort to do that. Our consistent position has been that the way to ensure we have falling emissions and a strong economy at the same time is through technology, not taxes. Importantly, that is not the member for Shortland's approach. He was a key architect of Labor's carbon tax. In fact, he claimed credit for it in the speech he gave a moment ago. It was that carbon tax that saw the jobs of hardworking Australians destroyed, including at the aluminium smelter. An opposition member interjecting— Mr TAYLOR: So they're taking ownership of it—I'll take the interjection—including the aluminium smelter at Kurri Kurri in the Hunter Valley, not far from the member's electorate. And now, through our investment in Kurri Kurri, we are re-establishing an industrial site at exactly the place where they took the jobs out. The member for Shortland goes further than that. One day, before I was about to give an interview on ABC regional radio, they were interviewing the member for Shortland. He was asked whether the Labor policy was a carbon tax. He said it was 'an implicit carbon tax', a sneaky carbon tax—and we know, one way or another, that that is the policy he supports. In fact, the president of the CFMEU's New South Wales energy and northern mining division said of the member for Shortland that 'he's running around the countryside supporting the Greens view of life'. Hear, hear! I don't often agree with the CFMEU, but I sure do agree with them on this one. The latest IPCC report confirms the need for global action. Meeting these challenges is a shared responsibility, and we are playing our part. We met, and beat, our 2020 targets. We did that at the same time as we were building the largest LNG export sector in the world. We are reducing emissions in Asia. We accept the fact that that makes it harder for us. Indeed, as the member for Shortland pointed out, when Labor left government, their forecast of our emissions for last year were over 100 million tonnes higher than we actually achieved. Conveniently, he completely ignored the role of small-scale solar. Mr Conroy interjecting— Mr TAYLOR: I'll take that interjection. He needs to really understand the sector before he makes these sorts of interjections. But what do we hear from those opposite on this issue? A failure to acknowledge Australia's achievements. They'll talk Australia down at every opportunity they get. They haven't had much to say about the vandalism we saw this morning—defacing iconic public buildings. That is not the way to do it; technology is the pathway to reducing emissions. They have no 2030 target, they have no plan, and there is nothing but deafening silence on these critical issues from those opposite. They come in here and talk about jobs. Meanwhile, they have voted against the expansion of ARENA for the Technology Investment Roadmap—$80 billion of combined public and private sector investment and 160,000 jobs. For the Labor Party, there are only their preferred ways to bring down emissions. It's ideological. When it comes to the practical questions of bringing emissions down, they will pick the ways they prefer. Fortunately, the member for Shortland has already stolen my thunder with Australia's extraordinary performance on reduction of emissions; he acknowledges that we've reduced emissions by 20 per cent since 2005 and that our achievements include reducing emissions by 100 million tonnes lower than those opposite forecast. He failed to acknowledge, though, that that is a performance that beats Canada, New Zealand, the United States, Japan and the OECD. In the electricity sector in particular, in the NEM, we've seen very sharp reductions, including 5.6 per cent in the last year alone. Ms Butler interjecting— Mr Conroy interjecting— The DEPUTY SPEAKER ( Mr Wallace ): The member for Griffith and the member for Shortland! Mr TAYLOR: That's 7,000 megawatts in the last year alone on new renewables, dominated by small-scale solar, and we have the highest amount of those installations in the world. Those opposite like to crow about their achievements when they were last in government. Their greatest achievement was the carbon tax. But let me tell you: we've provided 7,000 megawatts in renewables in one year, which is more than the entire time when Labor were in government. Indeed, the year before, it was 6,300 megawatts in a single year, which is, again, more than the entire time that Labor were in government. We've deployed renewables eight times faster than the global per person average and four times faster than Europe or the US. We are getting on with the job. When I was a teenager, the first cassette I ever bought was Billy Joel's Greatest Hits. It included great songs, like 'Piano Man'. But the best stuff I've seen lately isn't Billy Joel's Greatest Hits; it's Joel's greatest hits! Just across Lake Macquarie from the member for Shortland he's getting missiles on a daily basis. He said recently: … after 14 years of trying, the Labor Party has made not one contribution to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in this country. The member for Hunter doesn't agree with the member for Shortland's rendition of the world, but he goes further than that. Again, across Lake Macquarie, he sent a little missile. The member for Hunter has rightly pointed out that the member for McMahon's decision to vote against the government's ARENA expansion is just plain 'stupid policy and stupid politics'. Labor doesn't listen to him, though. Last month on 2GB, the member for Hunter said: … Labor should just back whatever the government puts on the table. To do otherwise is to suggest we are not genuinely committed to action on climate change. And we've got to back the things the government is prepared to support, from renewables right through to carbon capture and storage. But, again, sadly and tragically, Labor didn't listen. So we get more hits from Joel! In May, he warned that the 'excessive progressives think they can afford to cut the coalminers loose and still win'. But, again, they didn't listen. The member for McMahon and the member for Shortland think that they know best. The member for McMahon has bragged about being the key architect of Labor's failed climate policies that they took to the last election. He, of course, has never seen a tax he didn't like. I suspect the member for Shortland hasn't seen a tax he didn't like. The member for McMahon loved Labor's original carbon tax. When he was Treasurer, it got to the highest level it had ever got to. He was the Treasurer when that happened. You name it; he'll tax it, and that includes carbon. The difference is, on this side of the place, we're for technology, not taxes. You only need to look at their efforts in the last few months to see all of this in action. We've seen their opposition to technologies they don't like. One of them, of course, is carbon capture and storage. The member for Hunter has pointed out that those on his side need to start backing this technology. Indeed, he had to write an AFR opinion editorial— Mr Conroy interjecting— The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member for Shortland is warned. Mr TAYLOR: He had to write an op-ed to correct the incorrect views of those on his side of this place. No doubt talking to the member for Shortland, he said, 'To be taken seriously, climate change activists need to jettison their fundamentalism.' But it's not just the member for Hunter; it's also the former Chief Scientist, Alan Finkel, who said, 'The role of CCS is being promoted by the IEA, the United Nations and the Biden administration.' And yet, sadly, Labor votes against it. We are getting on with the job—practical action that Australians can be proud of.