THE HON TANYA PLIBERSEK MP
MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER
E&OE TRANSCRIPT
TELEVISION INTERVIEW
SKY NEWS AFTERNOON AGENDA WITH KIERAN GILBERT
WEDNESDAY, 11 OCTOBER 2023
SUBJECTS: HAMAS-ISRAEL CONFLICT; VOICE REFERENDUM; RENEWABLE ENERGY; HERITAGE LISTING OF VICTORIAN TRADES HALL.
KIERAN GILBERT, HOST: These are live pictures from Gaza. It’s 7.40am there. It’s the sun is rising, it’s the morning, obviously, as it’s waking up to another night of no power and no water supplies in that strip in the wake of the atrocities carried out by Hamas and in anticipation of a ground invasion expected by Israel over coming days. For reaction to the local ramifications of the war in Israel I caught up earlier with Labor frontbencher Tanya Plibersek.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek, thanks for your time. A bit to talk about in your space of environment. Before we do, though, lots on the agenda today. First of all, the fallout of the attacks in Israel, and it continues to reverberate here. How worried are you about these reports of threats to members of the Australian Jewish community, the rallies that we’re seeing? Are you worried about the potential for violence and civil unrest here in Australia?
TANYA PLIBERSEK, MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER: Well, first of all, I think it’s important to say that the attacks by Hamas on Israel are abhorrent and must stop immediately. This – the death toll is shocking. What’s happening in Israel I think is appalling. And around the world people are condemning the actions of Hamas.
We have seen some unfortunate spillover here in Australia with people at rallies, for example, chanting anti-Semitic chants, really appalling. I think it is really appalling, and I think most Australians are rightly disgusted.
GILBERT: And also in the last few hours some threats made to individual members of the Jewish community both in Melbourne and in Sydney. The Victoria Police confirming one particular incident they’re looking at on Toorak Road late yesterday. These sorts of clashes or incidents, they also bring a sense of dread, don’t they, that these divisions that we see internationally could come and be replicated at least to some extent here.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, there's no place for this sort of behaviour in Australia. There’s no place for anti-Semitism or prejudice or hate of any kind in Australia. And of course the government condemns any such behaviour unequivocally.
GILBERT: Is the government doing enough? Is its attention focused enough on protecting members of that community – specifically the Jewish community? Some parents telling their kids not to go to school, for example.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, of course, we absolutely will do whatever is necessary to prevent any sort of attacks or hostility here in Australia. The state governments are obviously working with their police forces to offer protection should it be necessary. But it is important to say that there is no place for hatred or vilification or any sort of threats here in Australia.
GILBERT: Absolutely. And on another matter, the referendum looms this Saturday. It looks like it’s going to be a very difficult ask to get that Yes vote up. Are you looking to the healing process that will be needed? Because there will be much healing needed after the vote if it goes the way every poll suggests it will. Because it has been a divisive campaign.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, in the immediate next few days I’m focusing every minute on trying to convince people who perhaps still haven’t made up their minds to vote yes. To vote yes for recognition and yes for reconciliation and yes to listening and yes to better results. Because we know that most Australians agree that the unacceptable gaps between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians should be addressed in this country. It’s not acceptable to have an eight-year life expectancy gap, to have gaps in education, in employment and, child health and mortality. We need to close those gaps, and more than 80 per cent of Indigenous Australians support a voice as a critical contribution to closing that gap because they know that when we listen to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians we make better decisions about the things that affect their lives.
We see it in my own electorate in Redfern. It’s the place that established the first Aboriginal medical service and the first Aboriginal legal service. We’ve got Aboriginal aged care and other services because they work, because they genuinely make a difference to people’s lives because its Indigenous Australians coming up with the solutions to the issues in their own communities.
So I’m going to be working every day. I’ll be out campaigning here in Victoria this afternoon. I’ll be in northern Tasmania tomorrow and my own electorate on Saturday trying to convince those wavering last-minute voters that we’re living in the No – a vote for No is a vote for more of the same, and the continuation of the unacceptable gaps that Australia has.
GILBERT: The polling suggests that the inner city, like your seat, will back the Yes vote; the outer suburbs and regional areas won’t. Why is there that divide in our community?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, I can say that the reason there’s a strong Yes vote in my community is because there’s really strong Aboriginal leadership not just during this referendum campaign – and I have to say there’s been terrific leadership during this referendum campaign from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders living in my electorate – but because my community has seen decades of First Nations leadership that, as I said earlier, the first Aboriginal legal service in the country was set up in Redfern. The first Aboriginal medical service in the country, set up in Redfern. We’ve got Aboriginal aged care at Wyanga. We’ve got Aboriginal employment services and support for young people, services like Tribal Warrior, we’ve got Babana Men’s Group, we’ve got Mudgin-Gal Women’s Group. All of these have been doing such amazing work in our local community that I think the residents of Redfern and surrounding suburbs know that this is the way forward. They’ve seen it in action for decades.
GILBERT: Now, you’ve just approved – on to areas in your portfolio, you’ve approved the Melbourne Renewable Energy Hub which includes the largest battery system in Asia.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yeah.
GILBERT: When you look at the demands to get to that target of over 80 per cent renewables by 2030, how do you bring the community with you on this path? Because I know – and our viewers would be well aware – in certain areas, certainly around wind power, there’s been a bit of pushback from local communities along the coast in particular. How do you bring people with you?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yeah, well, this is a really exciting announcement. We’ve announced environmental approval for the largest battery in Australia. It means that we can see the faster, stronger rollout of cheaper, cleaner renewable energy because we’ve got that battery backup for a million homes. And that’s about 30 kilometres northwest of Melbourne. That’s a really exciting announcement today that will firm up and underpin our transition to renewable energy.
And, Kieran, you’re right about some of the projects that we’re seeing, transmission lines, solar farms, wind farms, they do need to work with local communities to make sure that the benefits of local jobs are explained and that they have the lowest possible environmental and social impact on those communities. But we have to make the transition to get more cheaper, cleaner renewable energy into our energy grid. And the coal-fired power stations of yesteryear were closing under the former Liberal-National government. They had 22 different energy policies; they didn’t land a single one of them. So what we saw under the Liberals and Nationals is four gigawatts of dispatchable power leave the energy grid and only one gigawatt replacing that. This transition is already happening, but it was happening under the previous government without any plan to see more power going into the grid, particularly more renewable energy. We’re dealing with the outcome of a decade of delay and dithering and dysfunction and denial under the previous government about the need for transition. We’re doing it in the best, fastest and most thoughtful way we can.
GILBERT: Can the target be met? Is it realistic, that 82 per cent target?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: It’s an ambitious target. It certainly is an ambitious target. And as the Climate and Energy Minister Chris Bowen said yesterday, there’s no point in aiming low. I mean, you can aim low and get there no problem. We’re aiming high because we know that this country needs to make that transition to relying more on cheaper, cleaner renewable energy. It’s not just better for the environment; it will actually save Australian homes and businesses money over time. But it’s a big job. It’s a big job.
And I have to say, one of the interesting things that I’ve noticed from the Greens political party is they say go faster, go faster, more renewable energy, but then whenever there’s a project, a transmission line or a solar farm or a wind farm, they’ll be first to put their hands up against it. We actually need to make this transition together as a nation. We’ve seen what a decade of fights between, you know, pro-renewable energy, pro-coal and gas delivered us. It delivered us less energy security, higher costs and worse environmental outcomes. We’ve got to change that.
GILBERT: Now, you’re at the Victorian Trades Hall today. You’ve just announced the listing of the Trades Hall on the National Heritage List. Why is the building significant to the nation more broadly, not just the labour movement?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, it’s significant to the nation partly for its amazing architecture. I mean, this is a fantastic example of neo-classical architecture, probably one of the best in the country. But it’s also got such important social significance. This is where the stonemasons won the first fight in Australia for the 8-hour day – eight hours of work, eight hours of rest, eight hours of recreation every day. That changed Australian history and it made Australia one of the leading countries globally for recognising the rights of working people.
This is, in fact, where Arthur Calwell told Australians about the end of the war. Now, this is a place that fought apartheid and fought conscription and fought for equal pay for women and fought for the right of women to vote in Australia. So many huge social campaigns were started and organised and supported from this place.
GILBERT: Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek, thanks. Appreciate it.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Great to talk to you.
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