JAYNIE SEALE: A few mine sites have been visited by the Albanese government, and joining us live is Assistant Minister for Regional Development and Resources, Senator Anthony Chisholm.

Senator, thank you so much for joining us. Yes, a busy day in Queensland. Tell us how it went yesterday.

ANTHONY CHISHOLM: Yes, thanks very much, Jaynie. Had a really fascinating day yesterday. I was at the BMA Broadmeadows underground mine for the day and got to learn about their operations. Was able to visit the longwall down a couple of hundred metres underneath the ground as well and see the machines in action there and the way that they’re extracting the coal. There's been a coal mine there for decades now that’s been operating alongside two open pit mines as well. But they’ve got future expansion opportunities, and it was just good to get a briefing from the company about the process that they’ve got to go through in preparation for that and the certainty they want to provide their workers at the same time. So, it was very timely to go, given the debates we’re having around productivity and law reform, to go visit a mine and just see a practical example about what it means for that community in Moranbah and the certainty that those workers look for as well in terms of their careers.

JAYNIE SEALE: There’s certainly been a lot of controversy, would you admit or agree, that, you know, the expansion of coal mines from the Albanese government certainly not a favourable decision by many people, mainly due to, you know, pollution and trying to get down to net zero. So, why is this still happening? And give us a bit of feedback, if you don’t mind, on the reaction there.

ANTHONY CHISHOLM: Yeah, it’s – I’m with the mayor of this region, Kelly Vea Vea, who’s been a fantastic local representative for this community and is very passionate about the industries that drive her community as well. And we were reminded of some of those challenges at a roundtable we had with representatives from the local business community and resource companies in town last night. And we know that these are challenging projects, they’re massive projects, and they have to spend a lot of money to get these projects off the ground. So, I think it’s important for government to be here, see these firsthand and understand it.

I think one thing that gets missed, particularly in Queensland, is that 75 per cent of the coal that we export out of Queensland is for steelmaking. And there is strong demand for that coal right across the world and for decades to continue because there’s nothing to replace what they do with this steelmaking coal out of Queensland. So, I’m confident it’s got a bright future and the companies that I was talking to last night at the networking event, they want to continue to invest in Queensland. They want to continue to mine metallurgical coal because it does have a bright future. And it's important that governments have the right settings to encourage that to happen so that we know that those communities, like here in Moranbah, know that they’ve got a bright future and those workers that have built a great life for themselves can have confidence into the future that they’ll have that employment opportunities that come with the resource sector in this part of the world.

JAYNIE SEALE: And just looking at what we do have in terms of resources, you are the Assistant Minister for Regional Development and Resources, so, Senator, if we were uranium – and regardless of nuclear power plants, we know the Coalition is set to look at their policy in the next nine to 12 months – so, if we scrap the idea of having nuclear power plants here but lifted the ban to be able to provide uranium as an export to other countries which could help significantly lower our emissions, would you be open to that?

ANTHONY CHISHOLM: As part of the government, I’m not someone who’s philosophically opposed to uranium. But the reality is that there hasn’t been any serious proposal or exploration around uranium in Queensland or Australia for that matter. So, it’s not something that companies have been investing a lot of time, money or effort into. Obviously, part of that is because there has been a ban, but I think it’s just a reality in Queensland that there’s a lot of other metals and minerals that companies can pursue, and we’re seeing a lot of that already in the north west of the state. So obviously –

JAYNIE SEALE: Okay, but could you not argue that this is – would the race to, you know, the renewables, the urgency of getting down to net zero, would you agree that with the help of us in Australia and we export more uranium, that is going to help lower our emissions worldwide?

ANTHONY CHISHOLM: Yeah, but I don’t think there is the market demand, and that’s why, therefore, there aren’t companies that are pursuing opportunities in that regard. I think the real tale – and Moranbah is a great example of this – they’ve got operating coal mines and have had for decades, but they’re also the home to some of the biggest renewable energy projects in the country as well. So, I think we can see the direction that communities like this are going, and the mayor and community here are driving hard deals with these renewable companies to ensure they get good outcomes for their community. But also, the coal that they’re mining here will be used to make wind turbines as well. So, I think that just shows you the direction that the country is going in, but it also shows you the direction the world is going in, and Queensland and our minerals will play a critical part of that for decades to come.

JAYNIE SEALE: Well, Senator, it looks like a lovely day there. A bit of a cool start by the looks of it, but certainly the sun is shining. Thank you very much. And I hope you enjoy the rest of your day.

ANTHONY CHISHOLM: Thanks, Jaynie. Good to be with you.