Peter Dutton to woo David Crisafulli on nuclear energy
Peter Dutton will attempt to win over his Queensland counterpart on nuclear power should the LNP form government at the state election.
Peter Dutton will attempt to win over his Queensland counterpart on nuclear power should the Liberal National Party form government at the state election this month, insisting the first step was to “get David elected”.
The federal opposition leader joined Queensland election front runner, David Crisafulli, on the campaign trail on Friday ahead of the October 26 vote despite their opposing views on nuclear power.
Mr Crisafulli has steadfastly opposed his federal LNP’s energy policy and has refused to repeal the state’s nuclear ban if elected. But Mr Dutton said the pair were prepared for a “respectful conversation” on the issue, with Queensland government support crucial if he plans to build two reactors in the state’s regions.
“The first step is to get David elected as Premier,” Mr Dutton said.
“When the Prime Minister stops running scared, he’ll hold an election, and I intend to be Prime Minister after the next election, and we can have that conversation.”
“In the end, we want the same thing, and that is cheaper electricity for Queenslanders.”
A central pillar of Mr Dutton’s policy agenda ahead of next year’s federal election is the establishment of seven nuclear power stations across the country as part of the energy mix, including two sites in Queensland in the regional towns of Tarong and Callide.
The federal opposition leader acknowledged when the announcement was made in June that getting the state premiers on board would be difficult.
Mr Crisafulli was quick to knock back nuclear in Queensland and has instead backed a “maintenance guarantee” to keep up the state’s existing power infrastructure and introduce several small-scale pumped-hydro schemes.
“I just want to make the point that friends can have differences of opinion, that’s healthy,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“You know my position on that. We’ve put forward our plan, and the fact that I’ve asked Peter to join me today shows that he’s someone who wants to see me do well, and I want to see him do well.”
The LNP is on track to win government when Queenslanders head to the polls in three weeks. When asked by the media whether there would be a nuclear power plant in Queensland, Mr Crisafulli said: “You know my position on that”.
Friday marked the first time a federal leader has joined the Queensland campaign trail. The LNP leaders appeared together at Carindale Westfield Beyond DV Center for Hope, in the marginal LNP seat of Chatsworth (1.3 per cent), where Mr Crisafulli announced an $18.2m package to rollout GPS trackers for domestic violence orders.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is yet to join Premier Steven Miles on the campaign. Speaking from the Sunshine Coast, Mr Miles accused Mr Crisafulli of “weasel words”.
“What I think Queenslanders can be sure of is that between David Crisafulli and I, I am the only one who will stand up to Peter Dutton, I am the only one and will take the steps necessary to block Peter Dutton’s plan to build nuclear reactors,” Mr Miles said.
Mr Miles claimed nuclear energy would be more expensive than his unapproved plan to build the world’s largest pumped-hydro project, the Pioneer Burdekin.
“They both have very high capital costs, we know that, but the difference is nuclear has very high operational costs, so the power that you produce from nuclear continues to be very expensive.
“Renewables, with pumped hydro storage has that high capital cost, but has very low ongoing operational costs, that’s why we can be so confident that power prices under our plan will always be cheaper.”
The Labor government is relying on the proposed Pioneer-Burdekin Pumped Hydro project to enable it to shut down the state’s five coal-fired power stations, reach its target of 80 per cent renewable energy and slash emissions by 75 per cent in the next decade.
The project is still being subjected to financial, engineering and environmental investigations and is yet to get government approvals or substantive funding.
Initial estimates put the project at $12bn but Mr Miles has previously said that figure would likely balloon after more detailed financial modelling is complete.
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