GREG HUNT: Australia will have a renewable energy target of 20 per cent.  The Opposition’s key concerns  have been met by the Government, and today’s decision by the Government to accept our key concerns is a victory for common sense and it’s a victory for the environment and it’s a victory for renewable energy.

 

All of the key things that we really wanted to meet have been dealt with.  So what we’ve seen today is that the Government has accepted our approach of truly decoupling the renewable energy legislation from the emissions trading scheme.  The Government has made key concessions on waste coalmine gas.  It’s made key concessions on the treatment of trade exposed sectors such as aluminium.  It’s made a decision on heat pumps and it’s opened the door for industries such as food processing which may not otherwise have met the threshold to apply through the RET and then through the Productivity Commission to be considered as an appropriate industry.

 

The bottom line here is this is a victory for common sense; it’s a victory for Malcolm Turnbull who has worked very clearly and strongly to have in place an approach which would be acceptable to the Government.  He wanted something that was acceptable to the Government which would get Australia renewable energy legislation and we are delighted that Australia is set to have renewable energy legislation and the Coalition will support the renewable energy target of 20 per cent for Australia.  Andrew.

ANDREW ROBB: Thanks Greg.  Just a couple of comments to add to that.  As Greg said, it is a victory for common sense and I think if we could now implore the Government to apply the same common sense to the negotiation of an emissions trading scheme, I think we can move forward. T he interesting thing about this is not only will it deliver a 20 per cent renewable energy target for Australia, but it will do so by creating jobs in regional Australia but also protecting jobs.  A lot of traditional industries with energy intensity now will qualify for the 60 or 90 per cent assistance.  That’s a really good result.  As a consequence, the position we got to with the Government has had the unanimous support of the Coalition party room, which is a great result and it means there will be 100 per cent bipartisan support for this initiative going forward.

QUESTION: Have you secured more assistance or have you just secured de-linking the assistance from the CPRS?

 

GREG HUNT: No, we’ve received a number of things.  The first thing is that the emissions trading scheme and the renewable energy target will be fully decoupled, which means that the provisions for 60 per cent and 90 per cent coverage for trade-exposed energy-intensive industries will be replicated for the purposes of the renewable energy target. In addition, the Government will also be setting out a scheme to ensure that these high energy users will have access to some form of compensation in relation to the pre-existing MRET target.

 

ANDREW ROBB: When the price gets above $40, it will automatically trigger an assessment about assistance to all of those trade-exposed industries who would be unduly affected by the renewable energy target.

 

GREG HUNT: We had concerns about particular sectors and the Government moved beyond those particular sectors to cover all high-energy users.

 

QUESTION: Can you explain what the situation is for food processing?  You said something about the Productivity Commission. What exactly is that?

GREG HUNT: Minister Wong has indicated to us in writing that the Government would extend the process under the CPRS to the renewable energy target so as firms which would not classify as EITEs but did have a particular concern about their energy use, and that may well be in areas such as food processing, would have access to the Productivity Commission for a review.

 

QUESTION: So is the Opposition going to take this approach with the emissions trading scheme over the next few months?  Are you going to try and negotiate an outcome and pass the scheme?

ANDREW ROBB: Malcolm Turnbull has said that we’ve been prepared for some time to sit down and discuss.  We laid down nine principles or provisions which I think were very explicit.  The Government had refused.  It was a take it or leave it approach to the first consideration of their emissions trading scheme.  We’ve said we are prepared to negotiate and discuss in good faith so this is a good sign what’s happened this week.

 

GREG HUNT: Let me make this point – we are prepared to negotiate on the emissions trading scheme.  Let’s start with green carbon.  Let’s start with agricultural offsets.  We could do that this week, next week, the week after. So let’s start on a good faith basis with green carbon and making sure that Australian farmers can produce savings of CO₂ through using their land.

QUESTION:  You’ve been under a lot of pressure from backbenchers in the joint party room not to roll over on any amendments. Have all of your amendments been secured?

GREG HUNT: Look we think we’ve got between 80 and 90 per cent of what we wanted.  There was unanimous support from the party room.  The one thing we will do is we will move private members bills in relation to what’s known as banding or a reservation of a portion of the renewable energy target for the great emerging industries in the renewable sector of tidal, geothermal, wave energy.  So that’s the one thing which we’ve had to make a compromise on and I think that’s an honest answer but we’ll deal with that through private members legislation.

QUESTION: You said the Government had made a decision on pumps.  What was that decision?

GREG HUNT: They’ll be putting in place a set of regulations to deal with some of the problems where there was a multiplication of RECs.  They’ve given us a draft.  We’ve taken that in good faith and they’ll provide the full text in public shortly.

ANDREW ROBB: And actually be supporting some of the amendments that we put forward on that. They’ve accepted the proposition that we put to the Government on the heat pumps and, again, a unanimous decision on that.

QUESTION: And Greg, when’s the vote?

GREG HUNT: Well it’s really in the Government’s hands but we’re willing to help get it through the Senate as quickly as possible.  Alright, thank you.