Mr PITT: I rise to speak on the Future Made in Australia Bill 2024, which I have a lot of problems with, and the first is with the title. The title of this bill should be ‘no future for made in Australia manufacturing under this Labor government’ânone; absolutely none. And I’ll go on to explain why that’s the case and line up the facts that demonstrate it.
Mr PITT: Well, the missing link has been found. You can stop looking. Not only has it been found; it’s been delivered. The Boundary Road extension, the missing link in Hervey Bay, has finally been completed as part of the Hinkler Regional Dealâanother project delivered and another critical piece of infrastructure for the people of Hervey Bay and the Fraser Coast. Congratulations to all involved.
Mr PITT: Over the weekend, between 28 and 30 June, Volunteer Marine Rescue Bundaberg had their Family Fishing Classic, and it was an absolute cracker again. Now in its 17th year, it’s gone from 400 participants to more than a thousand. It is their biggest fundraising event.
Mr PITT: Of the advice of two Homers, there’s one that the Labor Party should have taken and the one that they did take. The Greek poet Homer said: ‘Words empty as the wind are best left unsaid.’ Unfortunately, those opposite didn’t take that advice.
Mr PITT: Whilst the headline of this legislation might say ‘nature positive’, the reality is this is Australia negative. I’ve been through the second reading speech and other pieces of the legislation. The part that really stands out in the second reading speech is we know that most businesses are doing the right thing, but the intention of this Labor government is to impose yet another layer of legislation, regulation and enforcement over the top of them.
Mr PITT: I’m testing my rates of recovery here, I have to say! Jetstar flights have started from Melbourne to Hervey Bay, in my electorate. What an incredible opportunity. The first flight touched down in Hervey Bay on Thursday last week. It’s scheduled three times a week. The service will provide more than 1,100 seats each week between Melbourne and Hervey Bay.
Mr PITT: Who’d have thought we’d be back here debating this again after the disaster of the live cattle export cancellation by the previous Labor government? But, now, here we find ourselves, where this Labor government is effectively cancelling the live sheep export from Western Australia.
Mr PITT: Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
The SPEAKER: Do you claim to have been misrepresented?
Mr PITT: Most grievously, Mr Speaker.
The SPEAKER: Please proceed.
Mr PITT: Would you believe a regional centre, the Hinkler electorate, has three representatives at the Paris Olympics for 2024? I want to congratulate the three of them: Isaac Cooper for swimming, Keira Stephens as a paralympic swimmer, and Matt Hauser for triathlon. They’re all incredible athletes, all very dedicated and all very hardworking.
Mr PITT: Give me a two, give me a seven, give me a fiveâput them all together and what have you got? You’ve got another broken promise from the Albanese government.
Mr PITT: I table three petitions calling for all war memorials in Australia to be heritage listed to ensure the preservation and protection of them, now and into the future. The petitions have been considered by the Petitions Committee and found to be in order.
Mr PITT: I rise to speak on the Net Zero Economy Authority Bill 2024. We’ve heard a lot from those opposite: emotional hubris with nothing based on facts, plenty of noise and plenty of media spin.
Mr PITT: Thank you very much. In September, I would have been here for 11 years. This is a place of highs and lows, challenges and roadblocks. There are a lot of things that get in the way, I’ve got to say, Mr Deputy Speakerâ
Mr PITT: I think it’s time in this debate we get some facts on the table. Here are a few. If we’re talking about increases in electricity costs under the Labor government, here are some samples: for Ausgrid in New South Wales, since the Labor government came to power, an increase of 29.5 per cent; for Endeavour Energy in New South Wales, an increase of 37.34 per cent; for Essential Energy in New South Wales, an increase of 30.5 per cent; for Energex in the south-east of Queensland, an increase of 35.73 per cent; and for SA Power Networks in South Australia, an increase of 33.51 per cent. They are facts.
Mr PITT: Over the weekend we had the local government elections in Queensland. I’m always happy to hand out some free advice, and I have some for new councillors and returning ones: stick to roads, rates and rubbish. I think that is what the ratepayers expect, it’s what they elect you for, and I hope that into the future that is what the local government elections will result in.
Mr PITT: I, of course, move to support the motion by the member for Durack and, in particular, the acknowledgement that it was the Labor government that spent $450 million on a divisive Voice to Parliament, and, not only that, they removed the cashless debit card from trials around the country.
Mr PITT: It’s on. I want to give my genuine congratulations to Prime Minister Albanese and his bride-to-be. I think it’s fantastic news. It will be the wedding of the year; there is no doubt about that whatsoever. We’ve heard in the press all week that it’s about the when.
Mr PITT: The Taylor Swift phenomenon is everywhere, but I am going to give a shout-out to Travis Kelce, who happened to win a Super Bowl a couple of weeks ago. Welcome to Australia!
Mr PITT (Hinkler) (19:40): Would you believe, Mr Deputy Speaker, that recently it was Australia Day? Around
Australia Day our local councils give out awards to citizens, and there were many in both the Fraser Coast
Regional Council area and Bundaberg. There were far too many to name, but I do want to call out a couple of them.
Mr PITT: Christmas and the new year are rapidly approaching, and I think it’s an appropriate time to look at the year in review, the challenges that have been overcome and the great things that have happened in the electorate of Hinkler in the last almost-12 months.
Mr PITT: The Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Accountability and Fairness) Bill 2023 is a complex bill, but I’ll be focusing my remarks on the PRRT, the petroleum resource rent tax, deductions cap.
Mr PITT: Just when the Australian people thought electricity prices couldn’t get any worse, along comes the ‘Minister for Energy Secrets’ with a new plan.
Mr PITT: What we see here is an indication of the inability of this Labor government to actually defend the Australian people and their interests. Our job in this place is to act in the interests of the Australian people, not others. It’s their safety and protection.
Mr PITT: I rise to thank Prime Minister Albanese. The Prime Minister came to my patch a couple of weeks ago to open the Bundaberg Brewed Drinks super brewery.
Mr PITT: The previous speaker, Mr Laxale, had quite the jumble of talking points. We’re here talking about national security and keeping Australians safe, but the focus from those opposite is always on the Leader of the Opposition or the shadow Treasurer. How about you just tell us what it is you intend to do? That is what the Australian people want to know.
Mr Pitt: Coming to the MPI: what we know is there a very few tradespeople on that side. The member for Hunter is here,
and I acknowledge that, as he’s a former fitter and turner, there is at least one on that side of the parliament; I’m not sure about the others. I want to use an analogy. When it comes to the cost of living in this country, the people
of Australia are in the iron vice.
Mr PITT: This month is Dyslexia Awareness Month, and 11-year-old George Rowland from
Hervey Bay wrote to me recently about the fact that it is Dyslexia Awareness Month, which is held right through October.
Mr PITT: The horrific events in Israel might seem far removed from Australia, but they are
a stark reminder that terrorism still exists, and our nation, Australia, must remain vigilant.
Mr PITT: Today I rise to acknowledge the passing of Enio Troiani. Enio passed away unexpectedly on 19 August at the age of 64. He was the beloved husband of Marianne and the dearly loved father and father-in-law of Natalie and Tyson, Pia and Chris, and Gabriella and Andrew.
Mr PITT: Water is always a difficult issue. It’s a fraught issue. It’s a complicated issue. The Murray-Darling Basin has always been that way. No matter where you stand, whether you are at a farm here in Australiaâwhether you’re in Queensland or South Australia or New South Walesâor in fact anywhere around the world, if you want to really narrow this down, the easiest way to think about it is: when you’re talking to a local farmer, they will think that downstream are wasters and upstream are thieves.
