Mr TIM WILSON (Goldstein—Assistant Minister to the Minister for Industry, Energy and Emissions Reduction) (15:34): Can I praise the member for Kennedy for his second valuable contribution in this parliament today. And I welcome the contribution he's made on this matter of public importance. Mr Katter interjecting— Mr TIM WILSON: I note his interjection, where he says that he was defending a union leader, but I'm sure that, once he heard the remarks from the Prime Minister about her encouraging lawbreaking, he retracted that proposition. At the heart of the issue that he has raised in this matter of public importance are important issues about Australia's economic future and security, and they are ones that we are very mindful of. But they are also ones where we don't want to end in a situation where we want to close Australia off to the world. We are an island country. We prosper and thrive in a trading environment, and we do so because we see the economic opportunity to offer our bounty to be able to enhance the wealth of the nation and create the jobs so that we can build the future of the country. As the member for Kennedy knows, if you have wealth that you generate from primary industries, you can invest it in building the base of your manufacturing sector. Of course, as part of that, there is an important role around affordable energy—something that is perhaps missing sometimes from some of the other crossbenchers, who seem to undervalue its contribution—and banning exports, for example, in certain fuels will only leave Australia a poorer nation and less capable of competing in the manufacturing sector. The member for Kennedy made a remark about $10 billion that he thought was the benefit of his proposals. I look forward to reading the modelling that backs that up. Fuel security is a big challenge for our country, and nobody should suggest otherwise. We have big challenges around supply chains and security, and it sits at the heart of our economic resilience as a nation. It's at the core of what we understand as a government is central to Australia's sense of security and confidence in the world. If you want to see what happens when you dismiss those challenges, you just need to look at what is happening in Europe right now—and I think that's partly what the member for Kennedy has been alluding to—where they have become dependent on foreign fuels, particularly gas. That has left many countries high and dry, where people are unable to afford energy prices. That has a direct impact on houses, particularly during those difficult and challenging winter months. Also, of course, it means that the wealth of those nations is transacted off to others who can provide them a supply and exploit or take advantage of them. We don't want that for our country. When Australians think about fuel security, what they think about is the ability to turn the switch on in their house and the light comes on and when they turn on the heater—and as the minister will know—they are able to heat their home for themselves and their family, particularly in the winter months, or turn on the air conditioner during the summer months and cool their home. And, of course, it is critical when they go to the bowser and they put the pump in that they are able to not only get the fuel but also are able to afford it. It's also a big challenge for industry. We know that, for industry, there is a huge demand from feedstock, gas and electricity to make sure that they are competitive. It doesn't matter what sector you are in—and the member for Kennedy rightly outlined the role of manufacturing. If you are a manufacturer in this country, your electricity prices are a critical part of the input of your competitiveness not just in producing the goods for us domestically but also in being able to export those goods around the world competitively so we can create more wealth for our country. That is the value-add that comes from our natural bounty, which is something we need to understand. And, of course, fuel security goes to the heart of our national defence. We know how critical that is, because we have big challenges in our regional security, and we want to be part of a solution that not only builds up our domestic security—which is very important—but also helps other sovereign states to be able to stand on their two feet regardless of the risks that may come. The DEPUTY SPEAKER ( Mr Llew O'Brien ): The assistant minister will just pause for a moment. Is it a point of order? Mr Katter: I claim to be misrepresented. This is about fuel security, and all our fuel comes from overseas. The DEPUTY SPEAKER: If the member is claiming to have been misrepresented, there will be an opportunity for that at some other time but not during the course of this debate. Mr TIM WILSON: There was no intention to misrepresent the member for Kennedy. At every point I have reiterated the fundamental concerns that he has raised and how critical it is that we have reliable, affordable energy and available energy for our country, for a multitude of purposes. The question is not whether we need it; the question is how best you achieve it. That is the basis of our plan and part of our approach as a government. One of the most critical things is that you don't achieve security by isolating yourself from the rest of the world. In fact, last year I wrote a paper—which may be of interest to the parliament—focused on the challenges of supply chains and managing risk, and particularly cited a paper by Baldwin and Evenett from the Centre of Trade and Economic Integration at the Graduate Institute in Geneva. It was in the context of COVID-19, but the principles remain fundamentally the same. The report found: The risk management literature has been looking at the resilience and robustness of supply chains for more than 20 years. It does not conclude that domestic production or shorter supply chains are the best way of addressing risks. It goes on to say that, instead: By allowing buyers to tap supplies produced in many national markets, individual supplier-specific and country-specific risks will be reduced. If you isolate yourself, you can only depend on yourself. If you work with other nations of good standing who are willing participants, you can hedge the risk and spread the risk across the board. That is very much the approach we are also taking when it comes to domestic policy. How do we harden our infrastructure, our supply chains and our security, while also not cutting our nose off to spite our face? That is why the Morrison government is taking strong action to further boost Australia's long-term fuel security by locking in the future of our refining sector. This is an issue not just of security but also supply. Our comprehensive fuel security package will support around 4,000 jobs, protect the jobs in our refineries and increase the amount of diesel we will keep onshore to address exactly the challenges the member for Kennedy outlined. And, of course, we don't just do this in isolation around the refining of existing or traditional fuels like diesel. Also, what do we need to do to build the industries and the foundations of the future of the Australian economy, particularly in the context of fuels? I think specifically about the challenges that we as a nation will face in the future with freight, as we move towards carbon neutrality. It is easy to say that we can just wave a magical wand through a piece of legislation, as some members may wish to, and somehow our challenges around reaching carbon neutrality are suddenly going to be solved. That's not the reality. We know that technology is going to be part of that solution and building the infrastructure and the foundations of Australia's future energy security is going to be a critical part of that conversation. When the Prime Minister and I, the minister, the member for Higgins, who I understand is here, and Senator Henderson, from the great state of Victoria, were at the Toyota plant in Altona, we saw the real power of hydrogen as part of the transport fuel strategy of the country. There are companies, increasingly, investing in hydrogen power, particularly for passenger vehicles. And there is the work that's being done with electric vehicles as well. The reason that hydrogen is so important is precisely the point that the member for Kennedy outlines. When we think about the issues of security around fuel, this very quickly transfers onto the broader issues that our country faces as a consequence of our road network and food security. It's fine to create food, to manufacture and process food, but if you can't get it from the factories or from the farms and into households, or at least into nearby supermarkets, we have a food security risk. Hydrogen fuel—as part of that freight network to enable, in a carbon neutral future, the capacity for goods to be freighted across the country—is going to be an important part of that conversation as well. That's why we understand how important fuel and fuel security is going to be, because in the end it goes right to the heart of our capacity to succeed as a country and deliver for Australians what they want: national security, freight and food security, the creation of jobs and opportunities, and a vibrant manufacturing sector that value-adds onto our primary industries. So there is a lot that we are doing in this space. As I said, it's not just in the context of hydrogen; it is also critical that we are doing it in new sectors that will build the future of the Australian economy. You just need to look at the work that we are doing in critical minerals. I see the minister in front of me who is in charge of the Critical Minerals Strategy. When we look at what we need to do to build energy security for the country, it is not just in the transport fuel space, which I understand is mostly what this motion is about, but also looking at the other sources of energy generation that underpin the electricity network that we are going to need in its many forms. Critical minerals are particularly important for building renewable resources, so they can be part of that solution. And, of course, they are minerals that we can export to the word.