JIM CHALMERS MP
SHADOW TREASURER
MEMBER FOR RANKIN

TERRI BUTLER MP
SHADOW MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER
MEMBER FOR GRIFFITH
 

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
DOORSTOP INTERVIEW
BRISBANE
FRIDAY, 28 JANUARY 2022

SUBJECTS: Great Barrier Reef Funding; the Morrison Government’s record on Debt and Deficit.

TERRI BUTLER, SHADOW MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER: We're here today because the Morrison Government is yet again demonstrating that they're all about the photo op and not about the follow up. They're all about announcement and not delivering. 

When it comes to the Morrison Government and the Great Barrier Reef I think Australians will look at what they've done over the past decade in office, not what they're promising to do in a decade's time. 

The fact is, today's announcement is an admission of failure by the Morrison-Joyce Government when it comes to the Great Barrier Reef. Their only policy to date, has been giving almost half a billion dollars to a tiny charity behind closed doors in a backroom deal. And clearly, they're admitting that that hasn't been enough. 

The fact is the international community have been considering whether to add the Great Barrier Reef to the World Heritage in Danger listing, and it's now up to the Morrison Government to provide a report to the international community by next month in relation to that consideration. 

What the international community knows and what Australians know is the greatest risk of the Great Barrier Reef is climate change. Until we have a government willing to take real action on climate change, it's just not good enough. Australians want a government that will take real action on climate change. But this is a government, the Morrison-Joyce Government, that turned up to Glasgow last year with nothing more than a pamphlet. 

Australians want a government that will take real action on climate change and protect the Great Barrier Reef. Australians will vote for an Albanese Labor Government come the next election; an Albanese Labor Government will take real action on climate change and will stand up for the Great Barrier Reef.

JIM CHALMERS, SHADOW TREASURER: Thanks Terri. This announcement today is an admission of failure and it's also a con job. It's a con job because the Morrison Government has left tourism businesses in Far North and North Queensland in the lurch and now five minutes to an election campaign they want to all of a sudden pretend that they care. If this Government really cared about the reef, they would care about climate change. You can't do anything meaningful about the reef unless you do something meaningful about climate change as well. This Government’s climate change policy is run by Barnaby Joyce and Matt Canavan and all the rest of them and the Reef is not getting a look in. 

So many businesses that we have spoken with in Far North Queensland in particular, have been left in the lurch by this Government and now the Government wants to pretend that they care about those tourism businesses. I think people understand that this is a Government makes big announcements and doesn't follow through. I think people will see this for what it is, which is a last ditch announcement on the eve of an election to try and make it look like they care about the reef when they don't. If they cared about the reef they'd care about all those tourism small businesses, they'd care about climate change policy. Instead, as Terri says, a decade of inaction won't be distracted from with an announcement about spending over the next 10 years or so. 

Scott Morrison sees the Reef as a political problem to be managed, not an environmental and economic imperative. Some of us have always understood the environmental and economic importance of the Great Barrier Reef. I think Australians will see through this announcement five minutes before an election. They know that Scott Morrison does not care about the Reef. If he did, he would have done something about it over the last decade that the Liberals and Nationals have been in office. 

Before we take your questions. There's another story out around the state of the deficit and the state of public debt in this country. 

The deficits would be smaller and there'd be less debt if this Government's budget wasn't riddled with rorts and weighed down with waste. The budget would be in much better nick, if Josh Frydenberg and Simon Birmingham hadn't signed off on all of these rorts, which have been such a waste of taxpayer money. The commitment made to the reef today pales in comparison to the billions and billions of dollars that this government has wasted on their political imperatives. This is a Government that gave tens of billions of dollars of JobKeeper to businesses that were already profitable, this is a Government that signed off on sports rorts and car park rorts, and all of the rest of it. 

The budget would be in much better condition if Frydenberg, Birmingham and Morrison hadn't signed off on all of these rorts. Never forget that when it comes to net debt in this country most of it was racked up by this Government before the pandemic. 

The days of being lectured about budget responsibility by these characters is over. They have ceded their ability to make a meaningful contribution to that conversation about the budget in this country, a budget which is riddled with rorts and weighed down with waste. A Treasurer and a Finance Minister which has signed off on all of this stupendous waste of money. They want to talk about the deficit today, they want to talk about public debt, but deficits would be smaller and public debt would be smaller were it not for all the rorts and waste which have characterised almost a decade of these characters mismanaging the budget and the economy. We're happy to take your questions.

JOURNALIST: Terri, what do you make of the timing of this announcement, not just in terms of the election but also the UNESCO report that's due back?

BUTLER: The fact is, this is a government that is desperately trying to scramble in relation to the reef after a decade of mismanagement. They're desperately trying to scramble before a forthcoming election and also before a forthcoming UNESCO consideration of whether to add the reef to the World Heritage in Danger list. They narrowly avoided a listing last year but they were told at the World Heritage Committee to provide a report by February this year, that is next month. They're scrambling for that too. The fact is that if they had taken Reef protection seriously over their decade in office, we'd be much better placed to resist an in Danger listing at the World Heritage Committee. The fact is if this Government's reef policy consisted of more than giving out money in a backroom deal and denying that climate change is real for a lot of backbench frankly, then we would be in a much better position to resist an in danger listing. We have in this country 64,000 jobs that depend on the reef, it brings in billions of dollars of revenue in a non-COVID year. And of course, it's one of the world's natural wonders. It shouldn't take a five minutes to midnight election campaign and UNESCO report to get this Government to act on the reef. And frankly, they need to do more on climate change for the reef and for the future.

JOURNALIST: Thank you and $1 billion is a lot of money, though. Would Labor reconsider upping its election promise for the reef?

BUTLER: Labor's commitment is for immediate support for protecting the Great Barrier Reef. The Government's announcement is for funding over 10 years or so. We don't even know how much of this money is supposed to be spent immediately and how much it will be in year seven, eight or nine. It's up to the Government to convince the Australian people that they'll be taking action immediately to stand up for the reef. And as I said, Australians are going to judge this Government on what they have done over the past decade, not what they say they're going to say in a decade's time.

ENDS