Albanese’s Green Tape Risks Killing WA Jobs

After more than 340 days, Anthony Albanese finally met President Donald Trump.

The meeting looked constructive and positive for the long-standing Australia–US relationship, but Australians will judge it by outcomes, not photo opportunities.

Mr Albanese must deliver on AUKUS and the jobs in WA that will come with this investment, not just announce it.

The Coalition initiated AUKUS in government. We welcome genuine progress and will always back what strengthens our national security.

The $12b announcement for the Henderson Defence Precinct is a huge opportunity for WA. Henderson will support contingency docking for nuclear-powered submarines and build surface vessels, including elements of general-purpose frigates.

The PM has promised more than 10,000 local jobs. We will hold him to it. WA must not miss out on AUKUS contracts, apprenticeships and supply-chain work.

AUKUS should mean real jobs in WA on time, on budget, no excuses.

Australia’s critical minerals endowment is a strategic asset. Building secure supply chains with trusted partners is welcome but it must be done by encouraging private investment and cutting red tape, not smothering projects under Labor’s bureaucracy.

And last Thursday, the front page of The West Australian said it all:

“Labor’s extreme ‘Nature Positive’ laws risk putting WA’s billion-dollar critical minerals projects on life support.”

Despite the fanfare of signing a framework with President Trump to boost mining, jobs and security, Mr Albanese is introducing legislation into Parliament that could jeopardise the very agreement he just signed.

WA should be powering the allied supply chain, not watching projects stall under Canberra’s green tape. We can’t let Albanese’s green laws kill off WA jobs.

And now we have a clear warning from the Reserve Bank.

Critical minerals projects typically take more than a decade to move from exploration to production - so delays today mean shortages tomorrow.

The RBA flags that drawn-out environmental approvals can add years to project timelines right as Australia has signed a $13 billion US–Australia minerals and rare-earths framework to reduce reliance on China, with $1.5 billion earmarked for priority projects within six months.

Announcements mean little if approvals keep stalling.

The day after the Environment Minister floated mandatory emissions-disclosure rules for miners, the RBA cautioned that new compliance burdens could further jeopardise timelines and viability. Piling on paperwork won’t get shovels in the ground.

Commercial realities bite, too. Many rare-earth proposals are marginal without support, and long lead times mean most won’t lift near-term output, especially if approvals continue to slip.

All of this carries a strategic risk.

China refines the majority of the world’s critical minerals, and supply chains are highly concentrated. If we want secure inputs for defence platforms and clean-energy technologies (batteries, wind, solar), Australia, especially WA, should be accelerating projects, not slowing them.

While we are yet to see the full draft environment legislation, it is clear that Labor’s new environmental laws risk being nothing but a gift to our overseas competitors and a blow to Australian industry, business and workers.

With first steps toward a climate trigger, unclear “net gain” requirements, larger penalties and a big new EPA bureaucracy, Labor’s plan is a handbrake on investment and a red light to jobs.

The Prime Minister promised a fresh approach to productivity; instead, his Environment Minister appears set to deliver anti-investment legislation. These penalties are among the harshest in the world, designed to punish business, not protect the environment. They send a simple message to investors: take your money and jobs somewhere else.

Rather than speeding up decisions, the scheme risks stopping projects in their tracks.

When Labor makes it harder to invest in Australia, every Australian pays the price. Each extra layer of bureaucracy makes it harder to get projects off the ground and easier for capital and jobs to go offshore.

Rushing complex, untested laws will put billions in investment and thousands of Australian jobs at risk.

The Coalition will work through the details, but we will not compromise on an approvals system that works, one that is clear, consistent and fast.

We’ll fight for certainty and accountability, not more bureaucracy. Australia can protect the environment and get things built; right now, Labor’s laws do neither.