Government objective is to co-invest with industry in what will end up being a network of stations across the country. Co-locating as close as possible with the existing electricity grid, locating as best as possible in terms of access to Australia’s natural resource, sunshine. And making sure that the government are doing so in an effective and efficient way with business on the way though.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said that this also will parallel the government’s decision to become a full member of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IREA). IREA will have its first global meeting in June 2009; Australia will be a full participant in the first meeting of this agency.
All designed to do this: to support jobs and business. Jobs in the low pollution, non-pollution sector in the economy. Also supporting business activity, supporting contractors right across the country and investing in the sort of energy future the government want.
There is one problem along the road and it is this. Turnbull and the Liberals indicated that they would not support the AUD22 billion worth of budget savings that we’ve announced in the budget. In other words Turnbull still leaves up in the air the Liberal’s support for these AUD22 billion worth of savings. Therefore if Turnbull and the Liberals are going to block AUD22 billion worth of savings from the budget, it puts at jeopardy funding for the increase in pensions and funding for the investment in this sort of solar energy technology for the future.
Australia needs a strategy for the future, which supports jobs and investment in business during this global economic recession while at the same time investing in the infrastructure the government need for future.
