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House of Assembly - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2016-03-22 Daily Xml
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Whyalla Steelworks

Mr HUGHES (Giles) (15:33): Last week, I led a delegation of steel workers, mine workers and union representatives to Canberra to meet face to face with politicians and senior advisers from across the political spectrum. We all felt that it was important that the people directly affected by job losses and the ongoing uncertainty about the economic future of Whyalla had an opportunity to tell their story. In leading the delegation, I felt that it was essential to touch base with all of the major parties, in addition to Nick Xenophon. We met with various members of the Labor Party from both houses, including opposition leader Bill Shorten. We greatly appreciated the time Bill Shorten set aside to meet with us. It is very clear that the ALP at a federal level has a strong commitment to an ongoing, viable steel industry and a strong commitment to manufacturing in general.

We met with senior advisers representing minister Pyne and minister Nash. Both advisers gave us a fair hearing, and it was a worthwhile exchange of information. They took the time to listen to individual members of the delegation and were generous with their time. The meeting with the Greens' Sarah Hanson-Young and Adam Bandt was also productive, as was the meeting with Nick Xenophon. The delegation also represented an opportunity to address the media, and I especially want to acknowledge the effort that Southern Cross Television went to in covering the delegation prior to, during and after the delegation visit.

It was very disappointing that no effort was made to meet with steelworkers or mine workers during the Prime Minister's recent visit to Whyalla. Only a select few of the Whyalla community got an invite to meet with the Prime Minister. We all welcome the announcement about bringing forward the rail contract, but we all realise that, in itself, it falls well short of securing the future of the steel industry in Whyalla.

The clear message the delegation put to the people we met was that a number of things had to happen. We emphasised the importance of a reform in steel procurement policy at a national level. We said that financial support for taxpayer-funded projects in other states entered into by the federal government should be conditional on preferencing the use of Australian steel. We said that South Australia's new steel procurement policy should become the national benchmark.

We do not believe that it is good enough for individual states to decide whether they preference Australian steel. The federal government provides financial assistance, and its control of the purse strings when it comes to major infrastructure projects should be used for the benefit of the Australian steel industry and for the jobs and the communities the industry supports. We indicated the importance of co-investment, while recognising that any co-investment would require clarity about the future direction of Arrium in addition to meeting a range of commitments by Arrium when it comes to their operations in Whyalla.

We acknowledged that work is being done to strengthen anti-dumping actions, and we wait to see what additional results will eventuate as a result of that work. I still maintain that our penalty regime falls short of where it should be in comparison to other countries. The other issue we raised was the large number of jobs that have been lost in Whyalla to date and the need for an assistance package designed to help and diversify our economy and assist those people who have lost jobs.

One of the things raised by Bill Shorten was the need for a steel plan—something that I wholeheartedly support. I left the steel industry just before the introduction of the Button Steel Plan in the 1980s. That plan made a real difference and helped set the conditions that delivered another quarter of a century of steelmaking in Whyalla and elsewhere in Australia. We need a 21st-century steel plan—one that reflects the conditions that we now operate in.

One important element of the Button Steel Plan was a structural assistance package partly designed to diversify the economies of steel-dependent communities. The outcome was mixed, and we need to learn from what worked and what did not. Having said that, the Whyalla community was left with some long-lived assets, such as the marina, that continue to generate benefits a quarter of a century later. We all hope that Whyalla gets through this difficult period with a strong steel industry and a far more diversified economy—an economy that is not subject to the degree that it is now to one-industry vulnerability.

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