Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister, Assistant Minister for the Public Service
One of Australia’s first coal fired power stations started in Yallourn in Victoria in the 1920s. It was powered by the vast brown coal deposits of the Latrobe Valley. Over the coming decade, Australia’s first offshore wind turbines will also start to run in the waters off the Latrobe Valley. Harnessing the power of the Bass Strait Winds. Generations of Australians have powered this nation safely, reliably and with dignity.
This Bill helps ensure they will continue to for generations to come. Australian workers. Australian industry. Australian communities. Working together to power every part of our nation and every one of us. The way we power Australia will change. But those who do it will not.
The target is clear – achieve net zero emissions by 2050 to avoid the most dangerous impacts of climate change. The pathway is clear – power our industries, light our homes, our businesses and fuel our transport with clean energy. The Government is determined that Australian workers and Australian ingenuity will get us there.
As the Prime Minister has said, we can be a renewable energy superpower. We can not only power our transformation but that of the rest of the world as well. But it may not happen automatically. The opportunities will not seize themselves. As the race to net zero accelerates – and it is a race – we must ensure Australian workers and communities are supported to play their part. We know there are communities in which the experience of the transition will be most concentrated. This Government knows that we must support these communities and those that live in them.
This Government also knows the critical role it can play. To better coordinate programs and policies, to attract investors and help communities make the most of the transformation opportunities. We will engage major stakeholders in the decision making and support structures. We will help deliver Australia’s future as a renewable energy superpower. We will leave no one behind.
In the net zero global economy of the future, it is hard to imagine where else you would rather be. Where else than Australia. Home to abundant renewable energy sources. To every metal and critical mineral essential to net zero technologies. Our geography has gifted us much. But only by working together will we be able to grab the opportunities of the future.
Less than two years ago, the approach of the Australian Government was very different.
The Australian Government had no legislated target for net zero. No legislated target for emissions reduction. No settled approach to the energy transition. No plan to bring our electricity grid into the 21st century.No policy to ensure replacement capacity of the 24 coal plants that announced closure dates. Back then, the Australian Government could not even agree to a long term energy policy. One former Liberal Premier went so far as to describe it as a”slow-moving train wreck.”In the time since, Australia has changed significantly.
Last month the Prime Minister described the history of the Liddell Power Station.
He explained:
“It’s a snapshot of the economic and energy transformation underway in Australia, particularly in regional Australia.”
“A journey that every advanced economy has embarked on.”
“And a race that Australia can win.”
Since the 2022 election, the Albanese Government has acted to address climate change. We have also put Australia on the path to becoming a renewable energy superpower. With over $40 billion invested in Australia.
This includes:
- The $20 billion Rewiring the Nation program to modernise our electricity grid and infrastructure so it can support a renewable energy based system.
- The $1.9 billion Powering the Regions Fund to support the decarbonisation of existing industries and the creation of new clean energy industries.
- The $4 billion Critical Minerals Facility to grow our critical minerals production sector.
- The $2 billion Hydrogen Headstart Program supporting development of large-scale renewable hydrogen projects.
- The $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund, to diversify and transform Australia’s industry for a net zero economy.
We have also supported Australian industries, workers and communities to participate in the shift to net zero. First with the establishment of the Net Zero Economy Agency, and now with the introduction of this Bill, to establish the Net Zero Economy Authority.
The Net Zero Economy Authority will be a new statutory agency. Its functions will be to:
- Coordinate policy and planning.
- Facilitate both public and private participation and investment.
- Support affected workers.
- Support First Nations Australians to participate in the transition.
- And deliver educational and promotional initiatives as Australia transitions to a net zero emissions economy.
The Net Zero Economy Authority’s mission will be to promote orderly and positive economic transformation for Australia. For regions and workers, as the world decarbonises. This recognises that the way in which we navigate economic transformation is as important as reaching the destination of a net zero economy. As emissions-intensive industries and technologies decarbonise, the Authority will help ensure Australians can access the opportunities new net zero industries bring.
It is critical that we support workers and communities throughout the transition. The Authority will be a partner, on behalf of Government, with industry and investors. It will help to get the big transformational projects happening. For example, projects that decarbonise industrial facilities in central Queensland, build new industries in the Spencer Gulf and Pilbara and grow the future economic base for our regions like the Hunter and La Trobe.
The Authority will work with project proponents, state governments and others to get projects to investment decision. It will mobilise public and private financing support, address enabling infrastructure needs and navigate regulatory processes.The Authority will be the Government shop-front for industry and investors. Helping as they seize the opportunities of Australia’s transformation to a net zero economy.
This will assist our regions to become the economic powerhouses of our future net zero economy.Industrial regions like Gladstone, the Hunter Valley, Latrobe Valley, Upper Spencer Gulf and the Pilbara, have powered Australia’s economy for generations.This can and should continue with the transition to net zero. The Authority will help place these regions in a position to continue to play the vital role they always have.
The Authority will also play an important role in supporting community understanding of the transformation to a net zero emissions economy. Ensuring Australians are engaged in the process and confident in its outcomes.The Government wants to be a partner with communities in navigating the change. Especially in regions where the changes will be more significant, and with First Nations Australians, providing opportunities for economic advancement. By partnering with workers and communities. By building understanding and relationships. We can ensure that no one is left behind as we build the industries and jobs that underpin our future prosperity.
The Authority will ensure workers receive the support they need. The Authority will work with employers, unions and others to assist workers to engage in new opportunities. As part of this, the Bill will establish the legislative framework for an Energy Industry Jobs Plan.Administered by the Authority, the Plan will enable the use of pooled redeployment arrangements. These will support workers in closing coal-fired power stations and closing gas-fired generators, and their dependent suppliers to transition directly to a new job. Workers in a closing facility will have opportunities to be redeployed into a new job with another employer in the same or a similar industry. Closing and dependent employers will be encouraged to participate voluntarily.
Our largest coal fired power stations are run by mature corporations. They often have strong plans in place to support their workforce as they prepare for closures. We expect many of them will put their hand up to participate in the Energy Industry Jobs Plan. The Bill provides the Fair Work Commission with powers to require their participation as a failsafe to make sure the transition is orderly. It enlivens enforceable obligations for those closing employers to provide transitional support to their employees, subject to operational requirements.
The Authority would encourage receiving employers to participate voluntarily. This Bill does not include compulsory participation of receiving employers.Those receiving employers that put their hand up will be in pole position to grab highly skilled and experienced workers. This community of interested employers will give workers the greatest opportunity to secure alternative employment.
The proposed model for the plan reflects the outcomes of detailed consultations with employee and employer groups. This is about supporting workers on the frontline of the energy transition. And supporting businesses to access the skills and experience they value. Helping workers and their families stay in place helps communities stay whole. Helping some businesses with challenging closures and others to deliver ambitious growth targets means making regional economies more robust and resilient.
The global economy is experiencing the biggest transformation since the industrial revolution. The spectrum of stakeholders for the transition to net zero is wide. This is why it is so pleasing that the Government’s approach has such broad support.
Jennifer Westacott, the former Business Council Chief Executive, described it: “as an opportunity for better jobs and better living standards.”
Innes Willox, Chief Executive of the national employer association Ai Group, said it: “can play an essential and positive role in helping regions like the Hunter, the Latrobe Valley and Gladstone to reach new phases of success.”
And Steve Murphy, National Secretary of the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union, explained: “It delivers on the promise.”
That is what this Government has done and what this Bill will do. It will ensure across Australia, local communities are able to enjoy the opportunities of our future. I would like to especially thank Greg Combet, the Chair of the Net Zero Economy Agency. Along with the many dedicated public servants that have been part of the Agency. Their work has helped to ensure the Government’s approach has broad support. The Bill builds on this support and enshrines it within the operation of the Authority. It will be led by an expertise-based board. With a stakeholder panel as a dedicated forum for information and insights from different stakeholder groups.
Australian workers and communities have long played a central role in the energy industry. Under this Government, they will continue to. As we transition to net zero, opportunities will emerge. With this Bill, Australians will be positioned to grab these opportunities. We will support workers and industry. Communities and regions.
The transition to net zero will push us through the doors of opportunity. We must not let them close behind us along the way. But keep them wide open so all Australians can get through.
I commend the Bill to the House.
