Renewable Energy Target

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:07): Supplementary, sir: can the Treasurer outline to the house whether or not his government actually remains committed to the renewable energy target of 50 per cent by 2025?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Treasurer, Minister for Finance, Minister for State Development, Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy) (14:07): Of course we are. We believe—

Mr Gardner interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Morialta is called to order.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: We believe in renewable energy. The only way we are going to get through dealing with climate change and global warming—

Mr Pisoni interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Unley is called to order.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: —is by decarbonising our electricity grid. The only way to decarbonise your electricity grid is to have an orderly exit of fossil fuels that are high-emitting replaced with a mechanism that supports base load generation and integration of renewable energy. That is what we are arguing for, and that is what we have always argued for. We don't subscribe to, 'Let's dig more coal.' We don't subscribe to, 'Let's restart another coal-fired generator or restart an old one.' That is not our argument; that is the argument for the member for Dunstan. The member for Dunstan argues that we should start digging coal again—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Morialta is warned.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: We don't subscribe to digging more coal. We subscribe to integrating renewable energy into the 21^st century electricity grid.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The members for Kavel and Hammond are called to order.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Members opposite are stuck in the past, and I have said many times that it is as ridiculous as us hunting whales for blubber as it is to start mining coal again. It cannot be the policy that we would actually increase emissions out of our electricity grid as we move closer and closer to those Paris targets. I remind members opposite that it wasn't Bill Shorten who signed the Paris agreement. It wasn't the Premier who signed the Paris agreement and it wasn't Premier Baird; it was Prime Minister Turnbull.

Prime Minister Turnbull has committed this country to decarbonising our electricity grid. So yes, we are committed to our renewable energy target, yes we are committed to decarbonising our electricity grid, and yes we are committed to an energy intensity scheme. The question is: what is the alternative policy? The alternative policy is more coal. That's the alternative.

Members interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Quite frankly, screaming is not a substitute for policy. Screaming and yelling is not a substitute. Let's have an alternative, let's have a debate of ideas, let's talk about this, but the Leader of the Opposition just shouts and howls at the moon.