COMMITTEES – Selection of Bills Committee – Report

I just want to stand up and proudly support the 20,000 Australian men and women people who work in our fantastic oil and gas industry. They do very hard work on behalf of all of us. It is an incredibly difficult and risky endeavour for anyone to work at, especially on an offshore oil rig. They spend months away from their families, locked in a small area with their work colleagues. It’s a risky job from time to time, and they deserve our support. They work for our nation. They work to keep us all going. The Greens say that the oil and gas industry is a dirty industry. Well, it’s dirty in the sense that those who work on an oil rig end up with grease and oil and mud all over them at the end of the day. They’ve got to have a shower at the end of the day. At the end of their work, they have to have a shower. All of you over there and me and all of us here have the liberty of showering before work, and it’s a very easy life. Those people work really hard, and you have no idea of what they have to go through. Not only do you have no idea about it—through you, Chair—but the Greens are absolute hypocrites, because I remember that only 18 months or so ago the Greens were in here supporting a bill which enforced—Yes, I am focused on the amendment, because the Greens are trying to shut down this industry through this amendment. That’s what they’re trying to do. Just 18 months ago, the Greens were in this chamber supporting cheap gas. The Greens actually wanted cheap gas. They wanted to cap the price of gas. So what is it? They wanted gas that badly that they wanted a cheap price for the gas. That’s what they supported, because we all know that we need the products of the oil and gas industry to power our homes and so that we can drive around our country; therefore, we need to support them for ourselves, not just on behalf of those men and women who sacrifice their livelihoods for us. They should be supported. Their hard work should be recognised, and that’s why I’m proud to stand with them and oppose the Greens’ efforts in this place.