Tuesday, 1 April 2025

Nuclear energy

Darren CHEESEMAN (South Barwon) (14:38): My question is to the Premier. Federal opposition leader Peter Dutton has proposed to put nuclear power stations right around the country, including right here in Victoria. What actions has the Victorian Parliament previously taken to ensure Victoria remains nuclear power free?

Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:39): In thanking the member for South Barwon for his question, I was just conferring with the minister for energy – I do think the standing orders allow me to yield the floor for the minister, but I will, through the minister, do my best endeavours –

Richard Riordan: Oh, no!

Jacinta ALLAN: Oh, come on now. I will answer it outstandingly. The advice that the energy minister has just provided me is that I think it was in 1985, under a previous state Labor government, that this Parliament passed a bill to make Victoria –

Lily D’Ambrosio interjected.

Jacinta ALLAN: nuclear free. Thank you, minister for energy. That is a piece of legislation that sat on the statute books for – what are we up to now?

Lily D’Ambrosio interjected.

Jacinta ALLAN: Forty years. Thank you again, minister for energy. 1985 – fun fact – is the year that the city loop was opened as well. There is a fun fact for you. The important point, though, is that it was completed in 1985. Museum station – 1985. I will show you the video. That is when it was completed.

Matthew Guy interjected.

Jacinta ALLAN: The member for Bulleen lives!

Matthew Guy: You can’t argue rail with me.

Jacinta ALLAN: I reckon I can. The member for South Barwon, though, has asked an important question. This Parliament, indeed this state, has already sent a very clear message about its view on nuclear energy in this state. In 1983 the bill went through the Parliament. The importance of this is that 42 years later we are now considering, when we live in a state and in a country where we are blessed with abundant sun resources, abundant wind resources, where we do not necessarily have to go down the path that other countries have gone down – the nuclear energy path – a proposition by the alternative government federally, by the alternative Prime Minister, to bring risky, expensive, toxic nuclear energy to this nation and to this state. That again is what is at risk here. This is estimated to be a $600 billion commitment from the federal Liberal Party. No wonder they are cutting funding to Victorian infrastructure projects; it is to pay for a $600 billion nuclear energy thought bubble.

Bridget Vallence: On a point of order, Speaker – the same one as before, Rulings from the Chair, page 156, Speaker Maddigan – the Premier is speaking in hypothetical terms about a future federal government.

Mary-Anne Thomas: Speaker, there is no point of order. We are now in the caretaker period of the federal government, where both parties’ policies need to be held up to scrutiny. It is entirely appropriate that the Premier of this state compares and contrasts what both of these alternative governments’ policy impacts could be on this state.

The SPEAKER: I am going to take the point of order on notice because I think that this particular period in time may make a difference to how I rule on a point of order like that.

Jacinta ALLAN: Reflecting back 42 years, we can perhaps thank the legislators in this place from that time for providing us with a framework to say very clearly to a potential federal Liberal government what our position on this issue is. But what is also important here is that we have an alternative, and that is cheaper, more secure renewable energy.

Darren CHEESEMAN (South Barwon) (14:43): My question is again to the Premier. What plans does Victoria have in place to provide affordable energy for Victorians?

Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:43): Of course there are alternatives. It is a cheaper alternative, it is a securer alternative, it is a safer alternative and it is a more reliable alternative, and it is what this government has been doing for 10 years by investing in renewable energy. We have a proof point because Victoria has amongst the lowest wholesale energy prices in the market, the Victorian default offer. There are some draft findings that came out just recently from the national energy market. We have the lowest offer – hundreds of dollars a year lower than New South Wales and Queensland – for households and for businesses. This does not happen by accident; it happens with sustained investment, sustained policy determination and will. I want to thank the minister for energy and climate action, who has driven this work that is seeing Victorians have this alternative, a cheaper alternative to the $600 billion nuclear thought bubble.