ADDRESS TO 2024 NORTHERN TERRITORY RESOURCES WEEK “SECURING THE FUTURE”, DARWIN

Wednesday, 18 September 2024

It is a pleasure to be back in Darwin for NT Resources Week once again: and a pleasure to be amongst the job-generators and wealth creators of Australia.

It’s an exciting time for the north; and there’s a distinct sense of urgency.
The time for Northern Australia and for the Northern Territory as the undisputed beating-heart of the North, truly is now:
● because the recent defence papers, including from the US, commit to significant activity and infrastructure spend in our north facing regions of the NT, and procurement for NT businesses should be a priority;
● because our increasingly affluent and hungry neighbours desire food produced in higher volumes and to our high standards;
● And because mining of critical and traditional minerals; and rare earths to enable global electrification; supply chain security; and crucial defence metals, are demanded – like never before – by our allies.

For these reasons, we must have a sense of urgency and use this conference to both demand and facilitate action.

The Coalition has demonstrated through our track record in government that we recognise and care about the families, the communities, the industries, the employers and employees, the economic contribution, and the potential of the Northern Territory.

The Coalition had provided the framework that develops and fortifies opportunities for Northerners to live and work to their fullest potential, so that every Australian can prosper.

The spirit of the North and a sense of urgency to advocate for recognition and support of its contribution to this nation – is what led me to the Federal Parliament.

I am, like all of you, determined to demand that the red and green tape, the activists that block development be removed and the opportunities, both for the Territory, and for the rest of Australiabe realised.

It is great to be in CLP Country!

A big congratulations to Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro, Minister for Mining and Energy Gerard Maley, and the rest of the Country Liberal team.

They bring not just an economic vision for the territory, but an economic urgency too.

Territorians are feeling first-hand the impacts of Federal Labor’s anti-mining and anti-gas policies.

And Territorians are experiencing first-hand the impacts of ‘green warfare’.

Green warfare isn’t just a job-destroying and economy-destroying crusade confined to fringe political players and causes.

It is sponsored – indeed, bankrolled – by the Federal Labor Government.

Labor has given – given! – no strings attached – $8.2 million in funding to the Environmental Defenders Office.

And 300 kilometres off the coast of Darwin we saw the results of that in relation to the Santos Barossa project.

Justice Natalie Charlesworth didn’t just throw-out the case waged against the Barossa project, by the Environmental Defender’s Office, she exposed them for coaching indigenous witnesses; and called-out their confected evidence.

In the Santos versus Tipakalippa case, Justice Charlesworth found, “opinions expressed…are so lacking in integrity that no weight can be placed on them.”

“It is conduct far flung from proper scientific method”, she continued, “and falls short of an expert’s obligation to this Court.”

And the government’s response was not to cease the $8.2 million in funding; but instead it gave a seal-of-approval declaring the EDO had not breached its contract.

I want to be clear: the Liberals and Nationals – including the CLP – will defund the Environmental Defenders Office. We don’t need legislation to do that. Just a pen.

And I also want to announce today that The Nationals have cemented as policy that environmental groups engaged in election campaigns will be banned from accepting foreign donations.

This will bring groups like the EDO, the Sunrise Project and MarketForces into line with other political and election campaigners.

On the weekend, with the backing of The Nationals parliamentary wing which includes local Territory’ Senator, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, The Nationals Federal Council formally adopted an urgency motion to “amend electoral laws to require all political actors in Commonwealth Elections, not already covered by the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918, be bound by the same foreign donation bans as all other political actors”.

Additionally, The Nationals have cemented as policy a requirement for ASIO to be asked to examine donations, in excess of $13,000 over the last ten years to political actors, not already covered by the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918, and report to the Attorney-General any concerns of attempted or actual foreign interference in past elections as a result of such donations.

Australians should know if foreign companies with vested anti-Australian interests; or foreign government with vested anti-Australian interests, are steering and manipulating our elections.

Green warfare is killing our economy; killing our jobs; and killing transparency and accountability in our democratic processes.

And that starts to kill our national security.

Of course, the Labor government’s kowtowing and sanctioning of “green warfare” isn’t just confined to the Territory.

Most recently, the Environment Minister blocked a $1 billion gold mine in NSW, unleashing potentially the biggest sovereign risk issue facing Australia’s resources sector.

We learnt from the Blayney gold mine decision, that not even the recognised traditional owners can be sure they are the recognised traditional owners.

This project had received State and Federal approvals; and had the support of the Premier and local community. It was opposed by a group that has no cultural authority over the area.

The decision of the Federal Government overrode the voice of the Orange Local Aboriginal Land Council, a voice which has cultural authority in the Blayney area.

The decision exposed the nonsense that the Government’s lip service of an acknowledgment of country, does not extend to any meaningful protection for recognised Native Title holders.

Let’s call it for what it is.

The recent misuse of Section 10 of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act, is not an attempt to protect the environment or cultural heritage.

Rather, it is an attempt to protect Minister Plibersek’s own seat of Sydney; where the Greens political party is securing just short of 25 percent of the vote.

And it is an attempt to protect Green political party preferences in Labor held seats across Australia.

These decisions are an indulgence of green warfare; and further undermine investment certainty. One of the greatest threats to future investment in our resources sector is activist lawfare.

Backed by funding and donations from unknown foreign players; on behalf of unknown corporations and possibly governments; with unknown motives; our minerals and gas sectors are in desperate need of certainty and clarity from government.

Industry tells me that while you may want certainty of outcome; you need to have certainty of process.

In Canberra last week, for Minerals Week, I highlighted how the weaponisation of Indigenous voices by environmental activists is damaging to the cause of Indigenous Australians, damaging to the integrity of our justice system, and damaging to the Australian economy, its jobs and its incomes.

Government must give industry the legal certainty about who compromises the recognised local Indigenous community or communities.

The resources sector cannot be left to guess – to play chance.

This doesn’t only apply to those impacted by the EPBC Act, and cultural heritage laws, but it must also apply to the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act.

Those in the gas sector are experiencing identical problems to the minerals sector – having to guess who to consult with major legal ramifications. Government must give legal certainty.

A Coalition government will. That is a commitment.

To streamline approvals for the resources sector, the Coalition has also given a commitment that we will accredit the states and territories to provide approvals which meet Commonwealth legislation requirements.

This should inject greater certainty. It means instead of Canberra bureaucracies overriding or doubling up on approvals already undertaken by Northern Territory based assessors, those
Territory based assessments and approvals will stand when conducted within an accredited framework.

A Coalition government will also re-introduce geological bio-regional assessments in key regions to develop projects.

By doing so, there will be fewer individualised or duplicated assessments.

During Minerals Week I outlined that just as government needs to provide certainty for approval processes, so too must government provide the framework for certainty in investment and certainty for supply chains to both Australia and our allies.

We are a world leader in critical mineral deposits. And our strategic mineral advantage should be shared – must be shared – with our allies.

Australia’s critical minerals policy framework must embed the importance of metals essential to our defence industries.

Labor’s approach to critical minerals has been a proposed production tax credit… uncosted, unmapped and undelivered. And a timeframe still unknown.

A Coalition government will prioritise critical minerals. We are serious about industry; serious about national security; and serious about securing supply chains for Australia and our allies.

The following should urgently be declared critical minerals:
● Copper
● zinc
● Bauxite
● Alumina
● aluminium
● Potash
● Phosphate
And – of course – uranium.

Our uranium deposits are the largest in the world: just short of one-third of the global total.

Yet we are the only nation – only – in the top 20 economies that are not already using zero-emission nuclear energy, or looking to do so.

Under a Coalition government, we aim to make Australia a greater part of the answer to the world’s zero emissions nuclear energy needs; just as we aim to add clean zero-emission nuclear power into our own domestic energy mix.

Domestic energy aside, we know that uranium demand for energy is only going to increase, as more countries turn away from Russian and Russian-linked sources.

While the world embraces new technologies, Labor won’t even have an adult conversation about uranium and nuclear energy. Their script is pathetically reduced to cartoons of three-eyed fish and caricatures of Homer Simpson’s workplace.

Such puerile flippancy and dismissiveness towards uranium doesn’t only come with an energy security and affordability cost… but it also comes with a climate emissions cost.

And at home, Australia must embrace a balanced energy mix including gas, renewables and, as coal retires from the system, it should be replaced with zero-emissions nuclear energy.

Labor’s cult-like attachment to their “renewables only” energy policy, is a wrecking ball to the Australian economy, our environment; and pointedly, to the Northern Territory’s economy.

With buckling knees, Labor and the Greens swoon at the mention of gas in our energy mix.

If Labor retains government within the next eight months, we know it will likely be a minority government. We know for a certainty it will be dependent on preferences and deals with the Greens political party, and we know the Greens political party has called for a ban on approvals and investment in the gas sector. And they have targeted the NT.

Already the Greens are looking at how to navigate a minority government in partnership with Labor. Their current platform is clear in its intent and design to bypass our Parliament.

“For oil and gas projects in Commonwealth waters”, it says, “the government can – without legislation – prevent the issuing of all new exploration permits”.

And it goes on.

“Similarly”, they say, “the Federal Parliament can override all fracking in the Northern Territory”.

Minister Plibersek’s recent announcement of yet another review of the Beetaloo Basin, disregards the local expertise of the NT Government, it’s Departments, and the Pepper Report, with all 135 recommendations accepted.

Earlier this week the Australian Energy Producers released an analysis by EnergyQuest that foresees the dangerous impacts of these anti-gas rhetoric and policies: power blackouts on the east-coast within two years; manufacturing to a standstill; Western Australia to be out of gas for electricity in the early-2030s, and with gas for the state’s mining sector running dry
within the decade.
And closer to home, here in the NT, the EnergyQuest report clearly states that the “development of the new supply from the Beetaloo Sub Basin would also not proceed under an investment ban”.

Just when Australia needs more gas to underpin our electricity network and broader energy needs – including in the manufacturing sector – Labor took the axe to programs specifically designed to increase gas production; and designed to deliver the gas to where it needs to go.

Labor scrapped the Coalition’s $305 million Strategic Basins Plans, designed to fastback new gas developments including in the NT’s Beetaloo.

They also axed the National Gas Infrastructure Plan – NGIP – designed to deliver gas across Australia to where it is needed; designed to ensure places like the Northern Territory can have greater access to southern markets.

And Labor has deliberately strangled gas supply by slowing-down approvals for new projects.

Offshore environmental approvals for gas, overseen by the Federal Government, have blown-out to an average of 380 days: almost three times longer than at the change of
government just over two years ago.

Labor even bungled their so-called ‘price controls’ on gas; and stripped gas from the Capacity Investment Scheme: designed to drive investment in energy generation to secure the power-grid.

In contrast the Coalition sees a clear future for the gas sector; and we are determined to bring more of our abundant gas reserves into the market.

We are currently costing, modelling and finalising our gas policy for the next election.

The continued development of a gas industry is also an important pathway to delivering on the Coalition’s commitment to delivering net-zero-emission nuclear energy.

We are not interested in retrospective gas reservations. We know those sorts of policies inflame sovereign risk; and don’t actually ensure gas can be piped to where it is needed.

But we are committed to the greater issuing of exploration permits; greater releases of offshore acreage; and greater investment in gas infrastructure.

We are also committed to flexible and workable IR laws; and committed to a policy framework that gives maximum investment certainty.

In return for additional gas investment opportunities, we will be asking the gas sector for a greater commitment to supply our domestic market.

More gas in the Australian market drives down energy prices; and drives up employment.

And with gas underpinning nearly a fifth of our electricity network, it is also an important part of the Coalition’s plan to tackle the Labor Party generated cost-of-living crisis.

Along with my colleagues, we have spent the last two years listening, engaging, and working with the resources sector.

We know what your sector needs to flourish; to get Australia back on track.

A Peter Dutton-led Coalition Government will deliver on that.

We know what needs to be done to deliver and sustain the next resources boom for Australia:
● Affordable energy
● Reduced and streamlined approval processes
● Investment certainty
● Access to gas
● Workable and flexible IR laws.

This will be the last NT Resources Week prior to the Federal election.

The Coalition now needs the keys to government.

We are ready.

ENDS