By Jo Nova
One Nation is the centre right party the Liberals forgot to be
The commentariat say that Pauline is a lightning rod for believers, but “she doesn’t have any solutions”. However in this day of Big-octopus-government, the best solution is when the government does nothing. Yesterday in the National Press Club Pauline Hanson laid out a textbook conservative policy platform on Net Zero: stop the subsidies, end the white elephants, don’t destroy our best agricultural land, and let the free market decide. And this was just the Net Zero policies. Hanson also wants to conserve our borders and our culture, and introduce Nuclear Energy.
Hanson wants to kill off the Snowy Hydroelectricity scheme. (Well, Hallalujuh!)
— “Let me make no apology: One Nation will end this renewable energy bribery — grants, tax incentives, concessional finance, even the government underwriting anything that sponsors the whole net zero hoax.”
— One Nation is saying: put everything into the energy mix. Let everyone share the wealth that is under our feet. We are one of the richest resource nations in the world. I am saying: get ideology out of the way.
— The Snowy Hydro 2.0 is nothing more than a black hole of debt for taxpayers.
The Liberals left a vacuum for One Nation to fill. They didn’t have to do that.
Hansen really twists the knife with the subsidies — this is the way to reach small businesses, farmers, and tradies.
The bloke in the corner store is productive. Does he get subsidies? I speak to struggling farmers everywhere. Do they get subsidies? Does the young 25-year-old going out on his own, starting up a business, get subsidies?
But no. Community batteries, solar banks, regional renewable projects — it’s impossible to keep track of all these taxpayer subsidies.
The government’s Clean Energy Finance Corporation provides tens of billions of dollars for renewable projects, of course at favourable rates. This is a rot. But this outfit, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, has received over $200 billion of taxpayers’ money. That is $200,000 million of taxpayer money.
The source of much of our wealth is under our feet and should not be only for export.
Pauline knows these problems are self-inflicted, and gets straight to the point: “Stop blaming the Middle East.”
Her speech has hit a nerve.
…
The transcript from about 23 — 31 minutes in as she talks about Energy:
Let me come back to energy, the central source of national poverty.
Amos Hochstein was the Special Coordinator for Energy Security during the Biden administration. Recently, he said of renewables:
“Renewables don’t compete with oil. They don’t supply solutions to aviation. We rely on more shipping that doesn’t run on renewables. Yes, we should invest more in renewables, but they won’t solve this crisis anytime soon.
“The inside of an electric vehicle is still made of plastic that is made from fuel and petroleum. Our hospitals are made entirely from petroleum. Our masks, our syringes, MRI machines, CT scans — all need helium, which comes from natural gas.”
Because individuals and businesses are suffering from this net zero nonsense, the government shovels out millions of dollars of taxpayers’ money just to justify their failing energy policy.
Let me make no apology: One Nation will end this renewable energy bribery — grants, tax incentives, concessional finance, even the government underwriting anything that sponsors the whole net zero hoax.
Let me give you one example of many: Rewiring the Nation, to build useless transmission lines and destroy prime agricultural land. Billions of taxpayers’ dollars. This will end.
One Nation will always protect prime agricultural land. It belongs to farmers, not government transmission lines.
Let me give you another example. The bloke in the corner store is productive. Does he get subsidies? I speak to struggling farmers everywhere. Do they get subsidies? Does the young 25-year-old going out on his own, starting up a business, get subsidies?
But no. Community batteries, solar banks, regional renewable projects — it’s impossible to keep track of all these taxpayer subsidies.
The government’s Clean Energy Finance Corporation provides tens of billions of dollars for renewable projects, of course at favourable rates. This is a rot.
Renewable energy projects benefit from cheaper finance than the market would offer. Are those benefits available to the bloke in the corner store, the small businessman in the suburbs, the businesses that keep regional towns in Australia alive? Do they get finance at favourable rates?
But this outfit, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, has received over $200 billion of taxpayers’ money. That is $200,000 million of taxpayer money.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not opposed to renewable energy. But if it’s the saviour of the energy crisis, and if it’s profitable, why would government have to prop it up?
One Nation is saying: put everything into the energy mix. Let everyone share the wealth that is under our feet. We are one of the richest resource nations in the world. I am saying: get ideology out of the way.
Let me just add that it’s clear the hydrogen energy solution is blowing up in Australia’s face — or should I say Andrew Forrest’s face?
But here we go again: taxpayer subsidies. A Hydrogen Headstart program — $4 billion over four budgets — and the Prime Minister has announced $520 million of your money for green hydrogen projects outside the Headstart program.
And what about Malcolm Turnbull’s $2 billion Snowy 2.0 project? He calls himself a businessman, but showed no regard for taxpayers’ money. The $2 billion is now forecast to reach over $40 billion. Cancel it. Cut our losses.
Governments have no money of their own other than what they take from taxpayers. Snowy Hydro 2.0 is nothing more than a black hole of debt for taxpayers.
Before the South Australian election, One Nation argued:
“Australia’s fuel shock exposes energy insecurity. Australia’s energy sector is finally catching up to what One Nation has been saying for years. We need a secure, reliable energy future.
“Every leap forward in human progress has come from mastering energy. From fire to steam, from coal to oil, each step has powered stronger economies, lifted people out of poverty and secured our future.
“Energy isn’t a luxury. It is the backbone of prosperity. Get it wrong and everything else suffers. Get it right and the nation thrives.”
Therefore, moving forward, One Nation will introduce nuclear energy.
Let me be plain and clear. Our energy crisis is a product of failed energy policy, and this policy was supported years ago by major political parties and the big media giants. I have always opposed it. Ford and Holden closed their factories more than a decade ago for one simple reason: the cost of production.
The source of much of our wealth is under our feet and should not be only for export. Of course, basic environmental standards must be met, but they can’t be allowed to throttle our economy.
We will never be able to do without coal and gas. We should encourage investment in them and provide power to homes and businesses as we once did — at the world’s cheapest price.
Bowen said last March that households stood to claim savings of up to 10.1%. Yet average electricity debt for customers on hardship programs has jumped 22.8% over the past year. These are Australian Energy Regulator figures. Gas hardship debt is up 22.2%.
This applies to households, small businesses, industry and manufacturing.
The regulator, not Pauline Hanson, warned: “Experiencing energy debt and the ability of customers experiencing financial difficulty to repay debt remain a concern.”
Stop blaming the Middle East.
Electricity prices increased across all regions before the war in the Middle East. And there is evidence that disconnections over the coming quarters will increase if conditions don’t improve.
Disconnections in the first quarter of this year saw more than 6,200 electricity customers cut off. Average debt at the point of disconnection was more than $2,600.
I should point out that there are now new rules, to take effect from July, that will prevent disconnections for debts below $500.