September 15, 2011
Latrobe Valley families are overwhelmingly opposed to the Gillard Labor Government’s carbon tax with 96% of local messages sent to the Prime Minister criticising the proposal.
Federal Member for Gippsland Darren Chester recently distributed postcards in the Latrobe Valley and invited residents to send a message to Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
Today he told Federal Parliament that just 32 of the 900 postcards that were returned to his office, expressed support for the new tax. This follows a survey in June where 76% of respondents opposed the tax.
Speaking on the carbon tax legislation today, Mr Chester said Latrobe Valley families would feel the full brunt of the carbon tax and their views deserved to be heard by the Parliament.
“The people in my community are at the absolute pointy end of this debate. For us, this is about our jobs; it is about our children’s futures in our key industries like power generation, manufacturing, small business and all forms of agriculture,” Mr Chester told Parliament.
“It is about people in my community having a future in the Gippsland-Latrobe Valley region. Unlike the government, I have given the people in my electorate a chance to have their say because I respect their opinions.
“Thirty-two people were in favour of the carbon tax and about 870 were against the tax. I have a clear mandate from the people of Gippsland to vote against this tax, which even the Prime Minister acknowledged in her own speech will do absolutely nothing for the environment.”
Mr Chester accused the Prime Minister of a fundamental breach of trust when she declared ‘there will be no carbon tax under a government I lead’.
“All the Australian people want from this Prime Minister is for her to keep her side of the deal, to honour her solemn contract with the Australian people that there will be no carbon tax under the government she leads,” Mr Chester said.
“The Prime Minister should apologise for the fundamental breach of trust and ask the Australian people for a mandate, before the next election, to introduce this tax.”
Mr Chester disputed government claims that only 500 of the so-called biggest polluters would be affected by the tax.
“This tax will cascade through the Australian economy like a toxic waterfall and add costs to every Australian family,” Mr Chester said.
“It will hurt small businesses, it will make Australian exporters less competitive and it will cost jobs.
“The people in my community keep asking, why is it okay for Australia to export coal to China, India, Korea and Japan to burn in their coal-fired power stations? But it is not okay for a Latrobe Valley powerstation worker to have his job using brown coal.
“The people in my electorate do not want the government’s household assistance package. They do not want transition plans. They want the decency of a job.”