ALP repeating past coal mistakes

Illustration: Johannes Leak

With electricity prices rising and the chances of meeting ambitious emissions reduction targets in retreat, the ALP risks repeating mistakes on coal that have cost it government in the past. As we report on Friday, the ALP national conference in Brisbane next month will again turn its back on coal, making the electoral task more difficult, particularly in Queensland and the Hunter Valley.

The ALP’s draft national 2023 platform has dropped two paragraphs from the 2021 document that backed the role of coal in the economy and in regional communities. The draft platform was compiled by a group of Labor MPs known as the national policy forum, in consultation with party members and unions. The ALP national conference is not a blueprint for government but it provides an insight into how the future political contest will be fought.

Some within Labor no doubt will argue that the electorate has moved on and is now firmly on board with Labor’s ambitious emissions-reduction targets that have been legislated. This confidence is reflected in Anthony Albanese’s decision while in Europe for the NATO summit to sign the nation up to be a member of the Germany-sponsored high-ambition climate club. But the reality is that coal continues to be a mainstay of Australia’s electricity generation and the backbone of economic activity in many regional centres, as well as a major contributor to government coffers, both state and federal.

The ALP would be wise to revisit the reasons for the defeat of Bill Shorten in 2019, which led to a more supportive stand for coal being adopted in the 2021 platform before the last election. In a submission to Labor’s post mortem of its 2019 electoral defeat, the Labor Environment Action Network said the campaign had failed a basic test of politics by not articulating to voters who would pay for its climate change policies, how much they would cost, and the ­impact on the economy. It said Labor had failed in 2019 to balance mitigating climate change with the need for “economic opportunities” for workers, industries and rural communities. LEAN argued that Labor needed to rebuild its credibility with workers in areas such as the Hunter Valley. The ALP pledged its support for coal workers in the 2021 party platform and 2022 campaign.

The 2021 platform said Labor recognises and values the economic and employment contribution of Australia’s mining and extractive resources industries including iron ore, coal, uranium, nickel, rare earths, gold, copper, zinc, silver, gas, bauxite and others. The ALP noted the critical importance these industries play in Australia’s economic prosperity, particularly in Australia’s terms of trade, as well as in supporting regional Australian communities. Labor supports Australian industry, including agriculture, manufacturing and minerals including coal, oil and gas, the 2021 platform said.

The 2023 draft platform supports gas but the only mention of coal is support for communities after coal-fired power stations shut down, which was also in the 2021 document. Now in office, Labor is distancing itself from coal and hoping that plans for new industries, including offshore wind and production of hydrogen, will give former coal workers new alternatives. This ignores the reality of strong global demand for both coking coal for steelmaking and steaming coal for power generation.

For credibility, rather than demonise coal, Chris Bowen must get Labor’s transition plan under control. Voters can see the plan is over budget and behind schedule, and the promised lower electricity prices from renewable energy have not materialised and are unlikely to do so.

The major concern is that coal plants are due to be retired before replacement generation capacity is in place. Sending the message that it no longer supports one of the nation’s biggest export industries, which still keeps the lights on at home, would be a show of hubris from a new government struggling to deliver what it has promised.