AUSTRALIA faces a growing fuel security crisis following ExxonMobil’s announcement that it plans to close the Altona oil refinery in Melbourne, with a loss of 350 jobs, further increasing the nation’s reliance on imported fuel to keep the economy moving, according to the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA).

The closure is the second announced in five months, following BP’s decision last year to shut the Kwinana refinery in Western Australia, leaving just two domestic fuel producers.

The MUA said the news highlighted the failure of the Morrison Government’s $2.5 billion fuel security package — announced last September — with the Viva Energy plant in Geelong the only refinery to sign up.

The union warned that the replacement of domestic fuel production with a growing reliance on fuel refined overseas and transported to Australia on foreign owned and operated tankers was making the nation increasingly vulnerable to any international crisis that impacts maritime trade.

MUA assistant national secretary Jamie Newlyn said the Federal Government needed to take urgent action to retain remaining refineries, increase domestic fuel stockpiles, and boost supply chain resilience.

“It is clear the Morrison Government’s fuel security plans have failed, with half of Australia’s remaining oil refineries announcing their closure in the last five months,” Mr Newlyn said.

“Even before these refineries close, more than 90 percent of Australia’s refined fuels are coming from overseas, leaving the nation seriously exposed to any crisis that impacts on maritime supply chains.

“We need urgent action from the Federal Government, with options including the purchase of these refineries — allowing this critical infrastructure to continue to operate under public ownership — along with a massive increase in domestic fuel reserves and the development of a strategic shipping fleet.

“The Federal Government should insist that if the Altona refinery closes, ExxonMobil must create a fleet of Australian-registered tankers to carry fuel to Australia and transport it around the coast.

“If ExxonMobil committed to use just 10 Australian ships to import and distribute fuel, it would create 340 seafaring jobs.”

Mr Newlyn said Australia continued to fall well short of the International Energy Agency’s 90-day fuel stockholding obligation, meaning the nation could run out of liquid fuel within weeks if a major crisis cut supplies.

“The COVID crisis exposed the vulnerability of Australia’s supply chains,” he said.

“If a pandemic, military conflict, natural disasters, or an economic shock cuts the flow of fuel to Australia, the situation would be catastrophic, with every part of the nation grinding to a halt.

“The Morrison Government keeps tinkering at the edges, rather than taking decisive action to address fuel security.

“What is required is an urgent, massive increase to fuel storage capacity in Australia — in line with the IEA’s fuel stockholding obligation — along with the development of a strategic shipping fleet of Australian tankers that can continue bringing fuel to the country in a crisis.

“Defending Australia’s economic security requires the strengthening of supply chains, especially for essential goods like fuel.”

In a report commissioned by the MUA, ‘Australia’s Fuel Security – Running on Empty’, shipping expert John Francis recommended the retention of a minimum number of Australian owned, managed and crewed tankers, saying it was justified on national security grounds and could be achieved at a minimal cost to end users.

‘Australia’s Fuel Security – Running on Empty’ is at: https://bit.ly/31cDisq

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LAW FIRM taking a lad in combatting dust diseases, Maurice Blackburn, is supporting calls by the Australian Workers Union (AWU) for tougher national regulations to protect all workers from deadly silica dust.

The AWU has launched a new campaign demanding the Federal Government impose minimum safety benchmarks and tougher penalties across all industries where workers are exposed to silica, rather than only focusing on stonemasons.

Maurice Blackburn principal, Jonathan Walsh said the government’s lack of urgency in addressing the issue was threatening the lives and livelihoods of many thousands of workers.

“I’ve said previously the reforms recommended by the government’s National Dust Diseases Taskforce’s interim report are pathetic and weak,” Mr Walsh said.

“Workers are dying but the Federal Government is effectively sitting on its hands instead of moving quickly to ensure the health and safety of workers.

“It is not enough for the government to focus only on engineered stone when we know that other workers, such as miners and tunnellers can be similarly exposed to highly dangerous levels of silica dust and develop chronic or fatal lung conditions,” Mr Walsh said.

“All Australian workers should have what is known to be best practice when it comes to safety in their workplace – their lives and their families’ well-being shouldn’t be up for negotiation.

“Surely, Australia can do better than that.

“Our client, Joanna McNeill is leading the union’s campaign for urgent action and is sadly suffering the consequences of lax industry safety practices when it comes to silica dust,” Mr Walsh said.

“Only 34 years old and the mother of two very young children, Joanna was diagnosed last year with silicosis after working in the mining industry.

“She wants to see tougher laws so that no other worker and their family is left in the same position simply because they did their job.”

https://www.awu.net.au/national/campaigns/13261/silicosis-kills/

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“CONFIRMATION that an Albanese Labor Government will abolish the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) is deeply disappointing and will severely undermine builder’s contribution to economic recovery." That is the view of Denita Wawn, CEO of Master Builders Australia.

“Unleashing construction union thuggery will undermine recovery,” Ms Wawn said. 

“The ABCC is crucial for the building and construction industry, crucial for the economy and crucial for the entire community.

“The economic impact of the pandemic cannot be ignored. Just as governments around the country are putting construction front and centre of their economic recovery plans, Labor is planning to take the leash off construction union thugs and bullies.

“By upholding the rule of law on worksites, the ABCC means construction workplaces can operate like normal workplaces and is central to tackling the toxic culture of lawlessness and thuggery deployed by building unions that has been plagued the sector for decades,” Ms Wawn said. 

“There is absolutely no evidence to support abolishing the ABCC but there is a mountain of evidence to support its retention, including hundreds of Federal Court judgements, countless inquiries and reviews, and four separate Royal Commissions of Inquiry spanning three decades. 

“Thuggery and lawlessness on construction sites rob the community by driving the cost of much needed community infrastructure by up by as much as 30 percent. These behaviours cheat the community of more classrooms, more hospital beds and more childcare places,” Ms Wawn said. 

“Giving a green light to thuggery and bullying will undermine the economic recovery and is contrary to the community’s interests."

www.masterbuilders.com.au

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THE House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics will hold a public hearing with the Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), Philip Lowe, on Friday, February 5, 2021. The RBA last appeared before the committee in December 2020.

Committee chair, Tim Wilson MP, said, "There have been few times when monetary policy has been more consequential for the Australian economy.

"The committee will be scrutinising the RBA’s measures in response to the COVID‑19 pandemic, particularly the move to implement quantitative easing, and how these measures will help the Australian economy recover.

"The decisions the RBA are making has an impact on everyone, and with cheap easy money pushing up asset prices, and the spectre of inflation and higher super that could soften wage increases on the horizon, there needs to be scrutiny of the consequences of their decisions.

"Issues of the governance culture within the RBA remain a point of public discussion and also need to be properly scrutinised," Mr Wilson said.

Public hearing details

Date: Friday, 5 February 2021
Time: 9.30am to 12.30pm
Location: Main Committee Room, Parliament House

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

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