Topics: Launch of the Turnbull Government’s $31.9 million Cyber Security Growth Centre in Melbourne.
GREG HUNT:
Delighted to be here today at Data61. This is the home of Australia's and Victoria's cyber security, data research, and our future industry within the data and cyber security areas.
Cybercrime has a huge impact. It's about the impact on peoples' bank accounts, their personal data, it's about the impact on all the different areas of our lives, so we have to make sure that we are cyber secure.
We have to make sure that we are safe in our bank accounts, that we are safe in our day-to-day lives, and that, in a connected world, what is an advantage is not a disadvantage.
That's why the Australian Government is launching the Cyber Security Growth Network, and it's about the fact that we have a $75 billion a year global industry now which is expected to grow to over $200 billion by 2020.
The billion dollar Australian industry we have is something that we want to double and triple and multiply tenfold to create jobs, to create investment, and to create opportunity for Australians.
That's why today we have launched the Australian Cyber Security Growth Network here in Melbourne, and appointed as the CEO Craig Davies.
Craig has had an extraordinary career with the Commonwealth Bank, with Westpac, with Cochlear, but until today he has been the global head of security for Atlassian.
He simply couldn't be a better credentialed person, or a better set of credentials for somebody who wants to build the Australian cyber security industry, to create jobs and to create investment.
DAN TEHAN:
Thanks Greg. Cyber is a threat, but it is also an opportunity.
We understand the threat, $1 billion at a minimum is the cost to our economy each year.
But also there is vast opportunities if we work together, and that's what we're here today launching a growth centre here in Melbourne which brings business, which brings innovation, which brings academia, which brings government, both federal and state together, to make sure that we drive a cyber industry that will create jobs in our local economy.
We want to make sure that this new growth area will deliver jobs to our economy. This Government is about securing current jobs and building the future for those jobs of the future, and that's what we're about today, and Greg it's a pleasure to be here with you at this launch.
GREG HUNT:
Great. Happy to take any questions on cyber security and other matters.
JOURNALIST:
Separate question, Mr Hunt. As the Environment Minister you oversaw the start of the Green Army.
Any comments on the reports today that the program will be scrapped by the Prime Minister?
GREG HUNT:
Look, I won't speculate on any matters that are for the Treasurer and for the mid-year economic forecasts.
JOURNALIST:
Do you support a price on emissions for the electricity industry?
GREG HUNT:
Well we're the party of lower electricity prices. We abolished the carbon tax. The Labor Party under Bill Shorten wants to abolish power stations and put workers out of jobs.
They want to drive up the price of electricity, and we are clearly and categorically the party of lower electricity prices.
Again, we are the party of lower electricity prices, and history has shown that's what we have done.
History has shown that Labor is the party of deliberately higher and higher electricity prices.
JOURNAIST:
If I could just bring you back to the question, do you believe there needs to be a price on carbon? No matter what it's called, how it's framed, do you think there needs to be a price on producing carbon?
GREG HUNT:
Well I think my history in this space has been categorical, 178 million tonnes of emissions reduction through the Emissions Reduction Fund, a safeguards mechanism which is about taking the pressure off electricity prices, not putting the pressure on.
JOURNALIST:
How dire is the gas shortage?
GREG HUNT:
Gas is a major issue for Australia. We've had states and territories put in place bans and moratoria on natural gas.
Natural gas is the very thing we use for our cooking, for heating our water, and for so much of our home heating, and what we see now is that, in manufacturing as well where gas is critically important, there is a looming shortage.
We need to take action on ensuring that natural gas supplies are available to all Australians.
It reduces emissions, it increases job opportunities, and at the same time it's about affordable energy.
So we will take action as a national government, and I will take action as a minister to make sure that we have real access to natural gas.
JOURNALIST:
And final question, Mr Hunt, is why not look at a gas reservation policy?
GREG HUNT:
That's not something that we've proposed until now, and so that will be a matter for the Minister for Resources. Okay, thank you very much.
(ENDS)