00:01It seems that Australia's dependence on its relationship with some of our Asian allies
00:07that supply our fuel has become more and more important, and evidently so, and that's one
00:13of the main reasons the government is citing for it not to impose this 25% tax.
00:20The calls for the 25% tax on gas companies' profits from its exports, with the argument
00:27being that the Australian taxpayer isn't getting a fair return on our gas.
00:34We export a lot of our gas, and we aren't getting as much revenue back from the gas that's
00:40under our feet as some people would like.
00:42And if this war in the Middle East has taught us anything, it's that oil and gas is an extremely
00:48valuable commodity.
00:49The government has really poured cold water on the idea of this 25% gas.
00:54The Prime Minister yesterday echoing some of the claims of the gas companies that they
01:00do already pay about $22 billion in tax in the last financial year.
01:05He also pointed out that gas companies have invested a lot here in Australia in order to
01:10drill for that gas.
01:12And multiple members of government have also now pointed out that our relationships with
01:17Asian allies is more important than ever.
01:20We export our gas to them, and they give fuel back to us.
01:24And given the global uncertainties at the moment, that is not a relationship they want to damage.
01:28But those in favour of the tax, including David Pocock, haven't been deterred by the government's
01:35brushing off of the idea.
01:37He's accusing the government of being in the gas industry's pocket.
01:41He says gas companies are evasive about how much tax they pay on actual exports rather
01:47than other taxes like corporate tax.
01:50And just because they invest here, it doesn't mean they get a free ride on profits.
01:55Here's what he had to say.
01:57Of course you're going to have countries that are benefiting from our gas say, hey, hey,
02:02leave things the way they are.
02:04Don't tinker with this system.
02:07We're the ones getting fleeced.
02:08They're making money off our gas while we're facing a budget where we all know there's going
02:13to be some very serious cuts at the same time that a finite resource, that once it's gone,
02:19it's gone, is being exported without a fair return.
02:23David Pocock there.
02:24And Bella, there's also been conversations today about Australia's refinery capacity.
02:29Take us through them.
02:30As you just heard earlier, New South Wales Premier Chris Minns says that he is open to the idea
02:38of looking into building some more refineries in New South Wales.
02:41As I said, the war in the Middle East has highlighted the importance of oil and gas, at least while
02:47the government is working on some of those renewable energy solutions as well.
02:51But it's highlighted our reliance on other nations for fuel and gas and their refining capacity with only two refineries
02:59left here in Australia.
03:01So Chris Minns says he's open to the idea.
03:04But in the federal space, Trade Minister Don Farrell didn't shut down the idea either.
03:10He says it's something the government will consider into the future, pointing out, though, that even if they did build
03:15a new refinery, it would take quite a few years to get up and running and wouldn't help us with
03:20this current crisis.
03:21As such, he says that the government's current focus is on the immediate action they can be taking to relieve
03:28some pressure at the bowser.
03:30He says that an additional 400 million litres of diesel has already been secured on top of what is already
03:37contracted just in these seven days alone.
03:39a little bit to talk about how many are going and again. We're going to
03:39take a little bit to train. So we're going
03:40to give you a a little bit of the Envyข Mon sidotape line. That's a quick
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