The suspension of BHP’s Nickel West operations is one of the first casualties of Labor’s rushed, fledgling Future Made in Australia policy.

The June 2024 Resources and Energy Quarterly (REQ) release highlights the strong outlook of Australia’s resources sector, however details the need for continued support and investment in our resources sector.

There is a risk of Australia becoming a very principled but very poor country, and this is something we should avoid.

Shadow Minister for Resources, Senator Susan McDonald has questioned the Albanese Government’s genuine desire to back Australian critical mineral interests, saying today’s funding announcement in Gladstone does not reverse the policy failures of the last two years.

After watching Australia’s nickel crisis unfold in January this year, thanks to the Government’s lack of direction in the critical minerals sector, Australia’s copper industry is now under threat.

Senator Susan McDonald, Shadow Minister for Resources, repeated earlier warnings that the Labor Government has been sitting on their hands expecting critical minerals  investors to rush to Australia – which is not the reality of the situation.

Senator McDonald said that “thanks to an expansion of international smelters, copper processing prices have plummeted to lows not seen since the global financial crisis, and international jurisdictions are scrambling to secure supply chains for the mineral.

“I have repeatedly called on the Government to include copper, and many other minerals on the critical minerals list in order to secure international supply chains with partner nations.

“We saw in January the impacts of the Government’s delays, with Australia’s nickel industry suffering major setbacks and the potential for hundreds of Australia workers to lose their jobs.

“If the same situation unfolded for copper, it could be devastating for the future of our critical minerals sector.

“Thanks to Albanese’s anti-business agenda, the resources sector is struggling, despite continuing to prop up Labor’s big-spending budgets.

“Industrial relations laws, skyrocketing input costs following government interventions,  and complicated, burdensome regulatory requirements are stifling investment, yet Labor continues to ignore industry whilst naively assuming that investors will continue to pour money into Australian projects.

“Our minerals will not mine themselves, and it is time for Labor to take real action to support the resources sector, and recognise that critical minerals are not simply inputs for renewables, but are vital for a broad range of uses.”

Shadow Resources Minister, Senator Susan McDonald, has slammed a weak Prime Minister unable to control his Ministers from making bad decisions that have undermined our resources sector and put investments in new major projects under threat.

Shadow Resources Minister, Senator Susan McDonald, has warned the Government that despite their update to the Critical Minerals and Strategic Materials Lists, Australia risks losing investment in critical minerals due to Labor’s lethargy.

Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek’s decision to reassess approvals for 18 major coal and gas projects marks the introduction of a ‘climate trigger’ by stealth – and a dangerous moment for Australia.

Shadow Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, Senator Susan McDonald, criticised Labor’s treatment of the resources sector in its Federal Budget, slamming anti-development policies that would severely erode investor confidence and do nothing to help ease costs of living.

Shadow Minister for Resources, Senator Susan McDonald has slammed Labor’s announcement of $100 million in budget cuts to the $200 million Critical Minerals Accelerator Program introduced by the Coalition earlier this year, all while pretending the funding is new.