Interview on ABC Newcastle with Kylie Morris

HOST, KYLIE MORRIS: Land currently housing coal mines is to be rezoned under new government plans that will be revealed today. Muswellbrook and Wallsend have been singled out to be rezoned for industrial land, including renewable energy projects, advanced manufacturing and warehousing. Senator Tim Ayres, the Minister for Industry and Innovation, will be in the Hunter today to make the announcement. Good morning, Senator Ayres.

SENATOR TIM AYRES, MINISTER FOR INDUSTRY AND INNOVATION AND MINISTER FOR SCIENCE: Oh, g', day, Kylie. It's good to be on the show in Muswellbrook where it's a bit cooler than down there.

HOST: Well, I think it was nine here last thing we checked, but I'm guessing it was. It's a few degrees cooler up there.

AYRES: Yeah, it's always colder up the valley in the morning, that's for sure.

HOST: Listen, tell me about these two coal mines in particular that are going to be transformed.

AYRES: Well, they're both mines that are slated for closure. The Mt Arthur mine here in Muswellbrook, or just near Muswellbrook. It's one of our largest mines. It's an export coal mine. The BHP have made a decision to close that facility. It's got nothing to do with the program of effort that the government has in place to build a modern electricity system for Australia. It's just a function of the life of the mine and the relationship that has with global coal markets. Of course the obligation that the mines have is to completely rehabilitate the land and that they are required to provision for that and that is overseen by the state governments. What's happening here is us and NSW, delivering on a commitment that the Albanese Government made in the lead up to the last election to deliver a master plan for the West Wallsend colliery and for Mt Arthur to make sure that we're using a portion of that land for new factories, for new industrial use, to drive new investment in reindustrialising and diversifying the Hunter Valley economy. That's what this is all about. So, that program of work has happened. Plans will be released today for the community, but also for the investment community. You know, new factories to see and work out how they can work in with these, what are going to be terrific industrial assets.

HOST: Minister, what has to happen at those sites to make this work? I mean you talk about the companies having responsibility for the rehabilitation of the land, but in terms of preparing them for investment by other industries, by the renewable energy industries, by advanced manufacturing and warehousing, what groundwork will be done?

AYRES: Well, just to give you a sense of scale, of course, the Mt Arthur site, for example, is thousands and thousands of hectares. This is several hundred hectares of land, but it starts from a good place, good access to power, good access to water, rail and road access. Take Muswellbrook right on the corner of the Golden Highway to the Western Renewable Energy Zone and the state's west and on the New England Highway. These are good places for industrial facilities, but they will require road access, planning around utilities, making sure that the land's fit for putting, you know, factories onto and warehouses onto, so that design work has been done. The community will have an opportunity to see that work, to consult on it, to make sure that it's fit for purpose and it works in with the local community. But we are an unashamedly pro-manufacturing government, the Albanese Government. We have the biggest package of manufacturing and industrial policy measures in Australia's history because we want to make Australia stronger and our future economy more resilient. That requires, you know, big things, big measures like production tax credits and small ones like working in with local communities to deliver industrial precincts and we're getting on with that job.

HOST. So, Minister, when you talk about working with local communities, what's happening today is that these draft master plans go on public exhibition. So, what kind of input? What are you inviting from the public? What are people going to be able to see?

AYRES: Well, they'll be able to see the plans. These are being championed by the local councils in Muswellbrook and Lake Macquarie. So, they will be able to see the plans, they'll be able to make submissions. The links in order to do that will be available publicly. This is a big public, a normal process to, you know, make sure that communities have their say and local businesses have their say too. Because you can imagine in Muswellbrook the local supply chain, the local maintenance facilities, you know, all of these have a stake in the future growth of the industrial economy, and this is an important opportunity for them to get stuck into that.

HOST: Minister, there's no doubt there's a lot at stake here for that community as well, in the sense that, you know, these mines back in the day were big employers and it's critical, isn't it, for towns like Muswellbrook and around to make sure that the industries that replace them are first of all going to hire local workers, that there will be jobs created and that those industries succeed. What's the government prepared to do to try and ensure that they do? Will there be any subsidies or encouragement, financial encouragement or otherwise incentives to try to ensure that industry move in and do, you know, go some way to building the future of the region.

AYRES: Well, it's certainly. I mean the first thing is that the Hunter Valley has dealt with mines opening and mines closing over the course of the last 150 years. This has been a constant feature of the Hunter Valley's economy. We've seen the Ashtonfield mine announced its closure over the last few months. Maxwell Mine announced that it's opening. You know that is, that is a feature of mines reaching the end of their technical life, shifting global markets. I mean the mining companies make these decisions in their own interests and that is a reality for the Hunter Valley. It's disruptive when it's a big mine like Mt Arthur. That is such a big feature of the local economy. That does create real pressure and real apprehensions. That's why Jeff Drayton, the local mayor here has been fighting so hard for this investment. Really strong voice for his community up here. We have been working hard on these industrial questions and if you just look at the last week, what is what has happened in the Hunter Valley? An announcement. $12 billion for train manufacturing for the next 30 or 40 years. The Albanese Government and the Minns Government publicly indicating that we are going to work together to deliver the future of the Tomago Aluminium facility. New investments in steelworks in Mayfield, the Central Coast Food Innovation Hub. $17 million. There is momentum here because the Hunter is a great place for industrial investment. What it needs is governments that are prepared to back it.

HOST. So, Minister, is your government prepared to back it to the tune of incentives in order to try and encourage industry to actually, you know, to actually turn up and take advantage of what you're describing? I mean you're describing it as this great investment opportunity but we know that, you know, there being an opportunity and investors actually taking advantage of that. They're two separate things. So, what's the government doing to make sure that there will be businesses there that thrive?

AYRES: Well, I've just outlined a series of interventions here where government plays a big role. There’s the production credits and production tax credits and the Future Made in Australia plan. We have intervened around the country to make sure that we're protecting industrial, you know, existing industrial capability and you know we'll keep working. I mean again big defence precinct at Williamtown like that is Commonwealth Albanese Government defence expenditure supporting local jobs. There'll be opportunities to keep doing that over time. That is why we have the biggest package of pro-manufacturing policy in our history. When I say biggest, I mean biggest in terms of scale and dollars invested in Australian manufacturing.

HOST: Minister, thank you for your time.

AYRES: Thanks, Kylie.