No magic in coal: Peter Dutton

Peter Dutton says the government should not fund a new coal-fired power station in central Queensland.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton says there’s “no silver bullet” to lowering energy prices. Picture: Kym Smith

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton says the government should not fund a new coal-fired power station in central Queensland, declaring there was “no magic bullet” for lowering energy prices.

MORE: Coal rebels refuse to be silenced

Mr Dutton said people in his Brisbane electorate of Dickson were not raising the issue of coal-fired power stations with him.

The government’s leading Queensland MP warned Barnaby Joyce’s proposal for a taxpayer-funded coal plant could lead to higher taxes and divert funds away from roads and other infrastructure projects.

“We’ve got taxpayers’ money to spend, the question is whether the federal government should be building a coal-fired power station. I don’t agree with that. I don’t think we should be,” Mr Dutton told 2GB radio.

“You have got power stations now that will be asking for taxpayers’ money for upgrades. The question is whether people want to pay more taxes or whether you are going to use taxpayer money instead of building that road or that new tunnel.”

Mr Dutton hit out at instability within the Nationals, driven by Mr Joyce’s push for a coal-fired power station in central Queensland.

“When we are talking about ourselves, we are not talking about the issues that are important to people and it becomes a distraction,” he said.

“Whatever the issue is I think if we are obsessing about ourselves or contemplating this or that, it just means we are not informing people what a Shorten government would mean and how disastrous it would be.”

Mr Dutton said the government was “not opposed” to underwriting coal projects, as long as it was the “lowest cost, most efficient use of resource to deliver energy”.

“I’m not hung up about one sector or another,” Mr Dutton said.

“Let’s call all of the facts out. There is no magic bullet here. That is the reality.”

Queensland Liberal senator Ian Macdonald hit out at Mr Joyce for “media posturing” on coal but supported a baseload power station in the north, whether it was fired by coal or pumped hydro.

“It really needs private investment with government guarantees that they won’t change the rules,” Senator Macdonald said.

“Scott Morrison has a very good point which I also independently agree with, which is that while there is a Labor government in Queensland, prospects of getting any sort of coal-fired power station up are nil. It’s all quite academic until we can change the Queensland government and that should be the goal for those of us involved in politics in Queensland.

“It’s a free world, (Mr Joyce) is free to advocate what he thinks is best but until we can sort out the Queensland government it’s all academic and dare I say media posturing.”