Anthony Albanese: Coal firms should not have lower emission targets than China and Indonesia

Queensland coal firms should not be forced to lower their emissions until competitors in China and Indonesia meet the same targets, Labor says.

Central Queensland’s coal firms should not be forced to lower their emissions until competitors in China and Indonesia meet the same targets, Labor says.

Federal Labor Leader Anthony Albanese, speaking in Mackay on Wednesday, spruiked his party’s ‘pro-coal’ bona fides as part of his Better Future for Queensland tour.

“You don’t reduce emissions by taking action in Australia that reduces economic activity that leads to higher emissions somewhere else,” Mr Albanese said.

“No one, no company, will be asked or have any restrictions imposed which are greater than its competitors. Because what that does is, to use one of my mum’s old phrases, ‘Cut your nose off to spite your face’.”

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese in Mackay, with Mackay Mayor Greg Williamson behind, overlooking the Pioneer River. Picture: Janessa Ekert

The full details of the scheme, or what Labor calls ‘tailored treatment for emissions intensive, trade-exposed industries’ are not yet clear, though Mr Albanese stressed a Labor government would maintain competitiveness while reducing emissions.

“What we actually need to do is focus on reducing emissions. And that’s why we want to do that, whilst making sure that Australian businesses continue to be competitive, whilst making sure we maximise employment creation, that we maximise economic activity here in Australia.”

Anthony Albanese is on a tour of Queensland ahead of a 2022 Federal Election. Picture: Caitlan Charles

The scheme forms part of Labor’s ‘Powering Australia’ net zero plan, which Mr Albanese claims will lower emissions, protect the state’s pervasive resources sector and deliver outsized benefits to regional centres such as Mackay.

“Regional Australia has a massive advantage comparative in terms of where advanced manufacturing can occur with clean energy, with lower energy prices,” he said.

“The cheapest form of new energy in Australia is clean energy. And that is the future in terms of where the growth will be. And what that will do is enable high-value manufacturing to be located here.

“We were at a prawn farm yesterday, Australia’s largest prawn farm, just to give you an example, near Proserpine. That now runs on, there’s a lot of energy as their highest costs with aerating the water, a range of activities associated there.

The Tassal Group has ambitious plans to expand its prawn farms at Proserpine from 270ha to 455ha by 2030 to produce 20,000 tonnes of prawns a year. Picture: Contributed

“They have a massive solar farm there now but they’re going to get a much bigger one, a much bigger one, to lower their energy costs.”

The Coalition has attacked parts of Labor’s plan as a new carbon tax on industry, particularly through the proposed application of the federal government’s safeguard mechanism, which sets a baseline emissions threshold permitted to heavy industry.

Labor plans to progressively and gradually lower the threshold, encouraging emitters to invest in carbon reduction technologies or buy carbon off-sets to keep below the declining threshold.

On Wednesday, Mr Albanese defended the proposal, noting it worked off a pre-existing structure established by the coalition.

“It’s their plan, in terms of the measure, the safeguard mechanism was introduced by the Abbott Government. It’s the Abbott Government’s mechanism,” he said.

The Coalition continues to argue Labor cannot be trusted to protect mining jobs, an argument that cut through in the 2019 election and helped propel Labor’s shellacking across much of regional Queensland.

Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce, who was also in Mackay on Tuesday, said working toward Net Zero was important but people wanted job security.

“What they don’t want is politicians with no pain to themselves making predictions for you they can’t actually back up,” he said.

“My view is that if you want to develop a parallel industry, go right ahead.

“And if it becomes apparent it can pay people the $120,000 to $150,000 a year that some will get working in a mine here, then people are going to have no problem with that.

“But don’t say to people there will be a job for you in the future if you leave your job now.”