I note this motion calls for a Senate inquiry into the Middle Arm development. I think it’s important, though, that the Senate notes that there was just a Senate inquiry into these matters. There was an inquiry into the development of the Beetaloo Basin and the Middle Arm project, which did begin in the previous parliament and did not finish until we came back after the election. There were some subsequent public hearings in that committee after the last election. So I’m just not sure that there needs to be another Senate committee so soon into this. It’s also, more broadly, a development that has been looked at so many times by both the Northern Territory government and the federal government. At one stage, there were six separate Northern Territory government inquiries over seven years into the Beetaloo Basin and the associated development of the Darwin port. There was a moratorium for a number of years through that process. All of those inquiries came back and said, ‘Yes, this gas development and the development of Darwin Port can occur safely while we protect the environment.’ There were a number of regulatory changes made in light of those inquiries. The most recent one was the Pepper inquiry. I think it’s just about time now that we let the Northern Territory government—and the federal government, with their support—get on with the job, given how many inquiries have been done.
Clearly, the mover of this motion, Senator Pocock, does not support the development. I might get some time to say why I disagree with his judgement, but I would also note from the start that we perhaps should look at what the Northern Territory people want for this development. I know Senator Pocock’s a very strong defender of Territory rights. As I said, there have been a number of reviews by the Northern Territory government. There have been a number of elections where this issue has been fought over and been an element of controversy. Time and time again, the Northern Territory people have elected governments in the Northern Territory that support the development of the Beetaloo Basin and the development of Middle Arm. So we should ultimately, at some point, respect that. I realise Senator Pocock has got questions. Others have got questions about the investment from the federal government in this development—the $1½ billion supported by both the coalition and the Labor Party. However, we do invest in different states and territories all the time. We’ve invested billions in the ACT light rail system, for example, here. I believe the ACT government’s probably coming back for more for its extension as well. So, if it’s good enough for us to invest billions in ACT infrastructure, surely it is good enough to make some investments for Darwin as well.
That brings me to why this investment is needed and why we should do this, not just for our nation but also, especially, for the Territory. I’ve spent a lot of time in Darwin over the course of my career in the Senate. I was the Minister for Northern Australia for a number of years. It’s a wonderful place with beautiful people. It’s kind of in the right place at the right time—or it should be. If we take the opportunities, it’s in the right place at the right time. It’s an Asia facing port, with massive demand coming out of that region. It’s the closest location we have to Indonesia—an enormous economy growing very strongly. It has great links with that country and other nations in South-East Asia. We really should be investing in Darwin if we’re serious about participating in this Asian century.
The one thing Darwin has lacked over its development, and still lacks, is access to reliable and cheap energy. It hasn’t traditionally had a large-scale source of energy, and that has somewhat restricted its development of manufacturing and therefore restricted the development of its port. Without a strong manufacturing sector and a lot of exports, this great natural port has not developed to the extent it possibly could. The Beetaloo basin and other gas developments, the Middle Arm development, offer that opportunity to massively expand the manufacturing industry in Darwin, to help our nation make more things—which is what we should be focused on post-COVID.
I want to say one thing on the development, while I still have time. I am concerned that the government, in its approach here, might unintentionally sabotage this development. I’m not questioning whether Senator Chisholm and his colleagues want this development to happen, but I hear from their language that they don’t want to talk about gas or the use of petrochemicals—the development of that industry—because they’re worried about the threat from their left wing and the Greens. All I hear now is ‘hydrogen’. Hydrogen is unproven. There is no mass, large-scale export of hydrogen anywhere in the world. Maybe it will happen and maybe it will take off, but, if hydrogen doesn’t come off and doesn’t work, I worry the government’s blinded approach to the real opportunities there in gas might mean this whole thing doesn’t proceed as it could, when there is so much demand through South-East Asia for petrochemical products. Not just natural gas itself but the products that come from that that make so much of what we use, like glues, plastics—all the COVID stuff, the masks and all that, came from petrochemicals. We should support this development in Darwin. It’s great for our nation and it’s time to get on with it. (Time expired)
