Mr COULTON (Parkes—Chief Nationals Whip) (13:48): There are a lot of words spoken in this place about a cleaner future and reducing our emissions. The reality is that we can’t do that without a mining sector. The critical minerals—the cobalt, the rare earths, the magnetite, the clean coal—are all the things we need for a new, modern, cleaner environment. They are essential. What we’ve seen today is legislation passed that’s actually going to make it immensely harder for those industries to actually operate.
If we’re serious in this country about reducing our emissions, we need to back communities like Broken Hill. Broken Hill has been carrying this country for 100 years, with silver, lead and zinc. Now they’ve got cobalt, magnetite and the rare earths, but they can’t do it on their own. They’re a strong community led by a strong council, but they need to have the backing of this parliament and this country. If we’re serious, and not just having flowery words from our well-heeled friends up here on the corner, talking about how much they care for a cleaner future, we’re going to actually have to back these towns financially to overcome the interference from international markets, largely from China, to get these businesses established. If we are serious about having a cleaner future, they can’t do it on their own and they need the support of the Australian people.