Future Made in Australia

When I was growing up in the 1960s, my mum and dad were typical of Australians who were really proud of what we made here. They were proud of their Holden car. They were proud of their Hills Hoist—Australian made. They were proud of Victa mowers. We used those and we knew they were made in Australia. At that time, manufacturing peaked at around 25 per cent of Australia's GDP, and up to a third of Australians were employed in manufacturing.

What happened in the sixties didn't happen by accident. John Curtin and Ben Chifley, whom I follow in the line of members for Macquarie very proudly, had a vision for what would happen when World War II ended. They wanted national reconstruction. They wanted things like the creation of a car manufacturing industry, and they saw the economic multiplier effect of having these industries. But 60 years on, while we are still very proud of our inventors, they don't often manufacture here. We are really proud of our scientists, but often they have to send their intellectual property offshore. And we are still proud of iconic Aussie brands, but too few of them exist and even fewer are made or even assembled here. But we can once again be proud of our ability not just to dig things up out of the ground, not just to grow things but to add value to them—to make things here or to make them better here. We can be the ones to turn resources that the world needs into the products that are in demand.

I'm not talking about putting on rose-coloured glasses and heading back to the sixties—heaven forbid! I'm thinking about where we could be in the 2030s, 2040s or 2050s by grabbing the opportunity that is right here now in front of us. We do that by harnessing private investment, with really prudent public investment a the catalyst for it. Labor wants Australia to be a country where we make things here, because making more things here will grow our economy and create good jobs—good, long-term, sustainable industries with good jobs. I think COVID showed us the need for us to stand on our own two feet and for that to be spread right around this nation. Incredible things can happen by making the most of what we have, making more things here, and making Australia wealthier, more secure and more independent. That's what Future Made in Australia is all about: an economic plan for a better future. It builds on the work that we've already done: with our National Reconstruction Fund, investing in manufacturing across the country; with our half a million fee-free TAFE places, building skills in our workforce; with our investments in things like universities, science and cybercapability, to name a few; and with our comprehensive road map for cleaner, cheaper energy.

In Australia we have a unique combination of circumstances. I've heard the Treasurer describe it as the geology, geography, meteorology and geopolitical advantage. All of these things can position us ahead of just about every other country in the world in thinking to the future if we seize those opportunities in this clean energy transition. What that really means is that unique combination of resources, of people and skills, of space and sunlight and wind can grow our economy, meaning good jobs, cheaper power and sustainable industries. I stress that we do this not as our sole purpose—because we are very focused on the immediate, on the things people are feeling day-to-day, like the cost-of-living pressures they are feeling. We do this at the same time. This is not a 'one or the other' situation. We are capable of asking: what is really pressing, for homes, residents and small businesses? What are the things that are pressuring them now? It's about not ignoring those and pretending they don't happen but tackling them to the very best of our ability. At the same time, we need to think about the future challenges so that we are actually putting Australia in a much better position for the coming decades. I think about doing this not just for my generation but for my kids' generation and for their kids' generation. That is what Labor is always thinking about: not just today—although today matters a lot—but also the future.

With this legislation, there are three parts to it, and I think it's worth understanding those three parts. One is the International Interest Framework. This will help us identify the sectors where Australia has a really clear and sustained advantage in a net zero economy or where we need to increase economic security or resilience. That is something I really want to stress—that this is actually about better aligning our national security with our economic security. The pandemic threw that into the spotlight. It threw into the spotlight the fragmentation of supply chains and our susceptibility as a smaller nation at the end of a supply chain, in often not being able to get the things we need when we need them. We want to turn that around, like so many other countries—the UK, Korea, Japan, Canada and the US. We are taking steps to safeguard ourselves, just as they are taking steps to safeguard themselves, against the next global shock. This is about derisking our economy and our society, whether we're thinking about a conflict, a pandemic, a cyberattack or another global energy crisis. That is the purpose of the National Interest Framework, the first pillar, if you will.

The second is a robust process to assess sectors to make sure we understand what the barriers to private investment might be and look at how we can actually break down those barriers. This is not about government replacing private investment. This is not about public money replacing private investment. It's about it being a catalyst for private investment.

The third pillar is a set of community benefit principles that make sure that the expenditure of public funds and the private investment that it generates lead not just to stronger returns but also to stronger communities. The ultimate aim is to have a more diversified and more resilient economy powered by renewable energy. We are already operating on the principles articulated in this legislation. In our last budget, we focused on a future made in Australia with investment, in refining and processing critical minerals, producing renewable hydrogen, exploring the production of green metals and low-carbon liquid fuels and not only supporting the manufacturing of clean energy technologies such as solar but also making sure we value-add in the battery supply chain. These are all things that meet that criteria.

Our $22 billion budget investment shows our commitment to this agenda, but it will need to be heavily supplemented by private investment. We look forward to working with the private sector. I had experience in working with the private sector—I had 25 years in business, much of it working with investment banks and large corporates—and 15 years ago they were saying: 'Just give us certainty. Give us the certainty we need to be able to make these investments.' They are wanting to invest, but the climate wars that those opposite have led means there has been absolute uncertainty for investors. As I said, I really look forward to being able to harness the private capital that is waiting for a government like ours and to put these things into legislation.

I mentioned earlier that we are doing this in tandem with tackling the cost of living. I just want to go back to that because I know what the allegations made by those opposite were. We are looking at a whole raft of costof-living things, but they're not just little tweaks. Let's look at the role wages play in helping people deal with the increases in the cost of living that have happened. I stood on the other side of this chamber back in 2019 and talked about the pressures that families and small businesses were under with the rising cost of living. Those opposite pooh-poohed the idea and said it wasn't a thing and wasn't going to happen. Well, the data shows it was happening. It was happening under their watch, and they ignored it. We are not ignoring it. We are actively doing what we can to boost wages at the same time as we are delivering tax cuts so that we're making sure people are earning more and keeping more of what they earn.

We're also making sure people benefit from relief on their energy bills. It's a small bit of relief that goes across every household. There's not just one group that benefits; it's going through every household and every small business. We're making sure people are getting the benefits of cheaper child care, cheaper medicines and the feefree TAFE that I've mentioned. Does everybody benefit from every one of those things? No. But we're looking at where we as a government can target the support. It might not be me who gets the biggest benefit. It might be my kids. It might be their friends. It might be our neighbours down the road.

So these are the ways that we as a government are looking at delivering relief but also economic security for people here and now, but at the same time we recognise that the future matters too. Our approach follows not just the vision of Chifley and Curtin, which I talked about earlier, but also what I saw when I was a journalist reporting on the Hawke and Keating government: deliberate decisions to deal with the now but also to think about the future and not be passive bystanders as great changes in global economies occurred—not to be a cork bobbing on the waves and waiting to see where they would take us but to be taking charge of where Australia heads, to recognise the opportunity and to act on it.

It is very disappointing that those opposite either fail to even see that there's an opportunity or, if they see it, deliberately pretend that there isn't one. They actively choose to not take part in helping Australia determine its own future. What's the evidence that I use to support that? Let's not just use rhetoric; let's look at the proof points. For a start, they voted against the National Reconstruction Fund, a fund to boost our local manufacturing. They voted against anyone receiving energy relief. They don't want families to feel relief; they want families to continue to feel even greater pain. They say that fee-free TAFE was a waste of money. When I talk to childcare workers about fee-free TAFE, as I did last week, I know the benefits that those individuals are getting. Not only are they getting a benefit but our childcare sector is getting a benefit, and I have to tell you that means an economic benefit for every Australian, not just the families who will directly benefit and who value those early educators and the work that they will do. Those opposite also attack the CSIRO. How you can attack people who are actually looking to the future and looking to harness new ideas, new thinking and the resources that we have I don't know. They called Australian manufacturing a graveyard. Well, that's how they see it—the ones who made sure we had no car industry in Australia thanks to their decisions. These are the proof points that tell you that what those opposite are saying is not about Australia having a brighter future; it's about standing still or going backwards. I don't even know whether what they're doing would allow us to tread water. I reckon we'd be drowning pretty fast.

I'm very proud to be standing and supporting this bill. I challenge those opposite to take their heads out of the sand, look at the world we live in, look at the potential Australia has, and say to every Australian: 'You know what? We believe in you. We believe Australians can really rise to these challenges if they get support from government. Even better, what if they have the support of this whole parliament?' I'm very pleased to see us leading this charge, and I urge them to catch up.