CARBON TAX

Mrs REDMOND (Heysen—Leader of the Opposition) (14:37): My question is to the Premier, and maybe the previous minister—that is, the Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills—might listen. A question to the Premier: why did the Premier support the carbon tax given that state Treasury modelling obtained under FOI indicates that the carbon tax will cost South Australia about 1,500 jobs once implemented, negating 75 per cent of the jobs created by the proposed Olympic Dam expansion next year?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Minister for State Development) (14:37): The reason why I and people on this side of the parliament supported putting a price on carbon is because we want a future for our children. We have decided that this is—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: We are also persuaded by the report that was prepared into the whole question of the original carbon pollution reduction scheme that the costs of adjustment that will occur for our community economically, socially and, of course, environmentally will just rise exponentially the longer we leave it, and that is why we are prepared to support the commonwealth. The short-term costs associated with the implementation of a price on carbon will be nothing like the burden of adjustment that will fall upon this state and this community.

And can I say this for those opposite who pretend to be close to business: if they only understood that the thing that is the most damaging for business is the lack of certainty about the future of a price on carbon. Everyone knows that we are going to have to put a price on carbon in the future—everyone knows that. What kills business is uncertainty; so, when a commonwealth government accepts its responsibilities and actually faces up to one of the great challenges that faces our generation and does something—which is to put a price on carbon, which means that this generation begins to bear the costs associated with saving future generations—that is a massive political challenge. We do not resile from that, but it is a moral challenge that we are prepared to accept—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: —and that is why we support the commonwealth's position.