Newsroom

March 28, 2025

FEDERAL Member for Kennedy Bob Katter has welcomed key elements of the opposition's budget reply speech, particularly the commitment to a reserve resource policy (RRP)—a policy Katter has championed for over 15 years.

The policy works to ensure a percentage of Australia's natural resources, in this case, gas, are reserved for domestic use before being exported. It is designed to safeguard Australia's energy security, lower domestic prices, and prioritise Australian industry.

While acknowledging the opposition's move towards protecting the nation's natural wealth, Mr Katter also praised the Albanese government's commitment to regional infrastructure.

"We praise the prime minister for committing to the great inland highway, and we thank the opposition leader for the RRP, which we've been screaming for—for more than 20 years," Mr Katter said.

"We ask questions in parliament, and these questions stay in their memory bank," Mr Katter said. "The opportunity has arisen for him [Dutton] to act upon those questions.

"I hope it is more than me preaching for RRP, but I'm not sure if I've ever heard anyone else preaching for it," Mr Katter remarked.

For nearly two decades, Mr Katter has been a sustained and lone voice in the parliament pushing for a reserve resource policy after being part of the inner-power group in the Queensland Bjelke-Petersen government, which implemented a similar policy and saw Queensland's development proposer and household electricity bills remain stable.

"Queensland's (former) reserve resource policy meant most of the state's electricity was coming from the world's biggest power stations and had zero input costs – the coal was free, taken by law, by the government under the RRP," Mr Katter explained.

With Australia paying up to $16 a unit for its gas, while countries like the United States paid about $6 a unit, Mr Katter said the nation "could not compete" in manufacturing – a key influence in rising cost-of-living pressures.

"Gas prices threaten the entire existence of industry in Australia. With the grim outlook for coal and all mineral processing – Australia is looking down the barrel of 200,000 jobs vanishing and, within three years, a plateau of the iron ore industry.

"The outlook is as barren as the middle of the Simpson Desert.

"And until now, governments (past and present) would rather export our resources, sell off our assets and let foreign companies prosper, rather than implement a reserve resource policy and retain our assets; which would reduce the ever increasing costs of living," said Mr Katter.

"But let's see if the LNP are serious about this or not, or if it is just another 'polly promise' on election eve."