Let’s have a yarn. We call it Canberra Conversations. Our last one of the year with the Shadow Minister for Immigration, Senator Paul Scarr. G’day. Paul.
Senator Scarr
G’day Tim, how are you?
Tim Webster
First, thank you for all your help this year. It’s great to talk to you.
Senator Scarr
No look, I’ve really enjoyed it, and it’s hard to believe that the year is at an end.
Tim Webster
Yes, it is. December 1 today, mate, December 1.
Senator Scarr
Unbelievable.
Tim Webster
Now, lots of things to discuss. We’ll talk about immigration itself in a thick, but yes, look, inflation is higher than expected. The Reserve Bank meets for the last time, December 9, and I would think, and you can tell me what your thoughts are, that for mortgage holders. There is not going to be much relief for the next several months.
Senator Scarr
I would have thought that was right. That inflation figure that came out last week was quite disappointing. 3.8%. Inflation is going up and going in the wrong direction. There’s a lot of people doing it though out there, Tim, as we all know.
Tim Webster
Would an Energy Rebate be the answer? Would that help us along the way?
Senator Scarr
That provides some short-term relief, doesn’t it, for people trying week to get by. In the long term, all you’re doing is using taxpayer dollars to actually give relief to part of the population, and in the long term, we’ve got to address the fact that we’ve got this unaffordable energy system at the moment, and we’ve got to put a focus on affordable electricity, and that’s certainly the Coalition’s policy.
Tim Webster
Yes, it’s front of mind for voters. It’s still cost of living, and its still energy policy, and now coming down the outside is Immigration. COP31 Paul. I mean, that just seems like part of the United Nations traveling cocktail party. I mean, talk about waste of time. They didn’t really decide anything, and now we’ve got Chris Bowen being the traveling President of COP31. I mean, what is the point of that?
Senator Scarr
It’s just extraordinary. Tim., I don’t understand how a Federal Government Minister with the workload a federal government minister has, is going to be President of the next COP meeting, the next United Nations Meeting. It just doesn’t make any sense to me, Tim. He needs to be in Australia. He needs to be focused on delivering for the Australian people. He needs to be focused on trying to bring those power prices down. That’s his number one, number two, number three job.
Tim Webster
You would have thought, would you? You would have thought. Rather than being the Minister in absentia.
Senator Scarr
Absolutely. It’s just ridiculous.
Tim Webster
Let’s get your thoughts on a few things for the last one, for the year. The changes to Environment Laws went through last week. I spoke to long-term politician, Tony Windsor, about all that last week. So, is that a win for the government? They’re painting it out as a win for them, but isn’t it just doing another deal with the Greens that they said they wouldn’t do?
Senator Scarr
Well, that’s my view. I mean, the Government can portray it as a win in terms of getting their legislation through, but the question is at what cost? From my perspective, it’s at the cost of the national interest. I come from the mining industry. One of my jobs used to be traveling the world, looking at potential projects, looking at different regulatory regimes to see if we wanted to invest there, and what I see in these new Environmental Laws is delay in cost, and people have options, companies have options as to whether or not they build a project here in Australia, or somewhere else. My concern is people are going to build their projects overseas, because it will take less time. The regulatory pathway will be easier, and more streamlined, and they won’t invest here, and we won’t get those jobs. So, I think we’ll hear more about this legislation in the years to come. It won’t surprise me at all if the Government comes back with amending legislation. It passed very quickly. There are hundreds and hundreds of pages. There was barely any scrutiny in the Senate, it was pushed through. So, I think we’ll hear more about this story over the next few years. Unfortunately.
Tim Webster
I think you’re right. I mean, nobody is going to be against streamlining and getting rid of red tape, but just one of the stories I read, and I just couldn’t believe it. There’s been a development that’s been on hold for 30 years around Melbourne, because they couldn’t decide on what to do with a legless lizard in three parts of the grassland around the proposed development, and it was going to be 800 or 900 home. Because of objections, it went down to five hundred, and it’s been bubbling along since the nineties. That’s the sort of thing that’s just getting in the way of getting things done in this country.
Senator Scarr
Absolutely. I see it where my office is in Queensland. There’s vacant land that could be developed, but because there’s a single gum tree, or two gum trees, about 400 meters apart, then the government decides out of Canberra that no, we need to do all sorts of things to try and address the potential that there’s going to be a koala at some stage that lives in one of those trees, and it’s just totally disproportionate, and I think that’s the issue, totally disproportionate. Everyone wants to do the right thing with the environment, but you got to keep things in perspective, and just shutting everything down is not helping. It’s not helping our housing supply issue either.
Tim Webster
No, it’s not, and another one – Peter Dutton, who we learned last week, is the least popular politician we’ve ever had, but he was saying during the election campaign, which was shambolic, that he wanted to cut the public service. Well, the Government are doing that, but they call it rationalization and streamlining. It’s cutting the public service by a different name, isn’t it?
Senator Scarr
Absolutely. Just last week in Parliament, we were discussing the big cuts to the CSIRO, in terms of scientists losing their jobs. So, I mean, it’s a continual theme, unfortunately. The Government said one thing in Opposition, but now it’s doing something different in Government.
Tim Webster
Senate Estimates is happening this week in Canberra, so you haven’t really all gone from Canberra yet! Last one for the year. Much of that will be about defence?
Senator Scarr
Absolutely. There’ll be questions about defence. There’ll be questions about the economy that inflation rate is going higher. Questions about Government spending, and, of course, some questions about Immigration, which I’ll have the opportunity to ask tomorrow.
Tim Webster
Just on Immigration before I let you go for the year. We’re reading what Sussan Ley is proposing, and you say you are going to have a policy by the end of the year. We’ve got Cost of Living, we’ve got an energy crisis, we’ve got all of that. But fast becoming the number one issue for people is Immigration. We’re importing the wrong people, and too many of them. They’ll always be Immigration. They’ll always be. Under you, there’ll be Immigration too, but it’s got to be the right Immigration and the right number.
Senator Scarr
Absolutely. Our Immigration Policy must be in Australia’s national interest, and that means we get the right people coming to Australia who can contribute positively to our society, and it also means we get the rate right. We all know the pressures on infrastructure, government services, and housing. So, it’s a really important issue, and as I’ve said previously, that Immigration rate is still 100,000 a year higher than it was before the Covid 19 Pandemic. It’s just too high.
Tim Webster
Yes, it is, and that’s what our listeners certainly think. Well again, mate. Thank you. I hope we can talk to you next year. Obviously, you haven’t finished work yet, but have a lovely Christmas, and we’ll hopefully talk to you next year.
Senator Scarr
Same to you. Tim. Same to you and your listeners. I’ve really enjoyed the year.
