On 9 September 2016, the smokestacks at the Playford coal fired power station were blown up. The then Premier of South Australia, Jay Weatherill, was adamant that "There's no future in coal-fired power generation." By the end of the month, the lights in the whole of South Australia went out as lack of reliable electricity exposed the weakness of renewable electricity. The South Australian Government then spent over $500 million on a gas fired power plant to firm up supply. Read more

Some days I wonder why I put my hand up for a job that typically sees me away from my wife and 5 kids for more than 200 nights a year. Then there are other days when I remember why it is all worthwhile. Last week I had the privilege of travelling to the Adani Carmichael mine. This was my third visit to the site and previously I was always struck by it being in the middle of nowhere. You can draw a circle, of 150 kilometres in radius, around Carmichael and you won't encompass a single substantial town. Read more

The next census will be taken on August 10 this year and it will likely confirm that fewer than half of all Australians now consider themselves Christian. At the last census, in 2016, just 52 per cent of Australians described themselves as Christian. There has been a remarkable fall in the proportion of Australian Christians, from 88 per cent in 1966. There is nothing inherently wrong in Australia moving to a non-Christian society. Many will celebrate a more diverse and multicultural Australia. But there are also risks as well because Christian principles are the foundation from which modern Western societies became the most free and prosperous in history. Read more

A recent European study found that if the Netherlands were to convert their electricity to wind and solar they would need to blanket an area nearly two times the size of their country. Using the same calculations for Australia we would see an area double the size of our irrigated farming land taken up with wind and solar farms. To generate the same amount of electricity, we would need to build nuclear power stations that would only cover 60 square kilometres. In other words, we could power the whole of Australia with nuclear plants that would take up just 10 per cent of Rockhampton's land area. This is because wind energy requires at least 250 times more land than nuclear and solar requires 150 times more land. Read more

At a wake last week, after we had spent time reflecting on the wonderful life of my father-in-law who had been taken too soon, conversation turned to other issues. Eventually discussion turned to coronavirus and the vaccine. Just like the overall population there were a variety of views about whether to get the vaccine or how much you trust experts. We have been well served by our health authorities over the past year. That does not mean that we should not allow people to criticise them though. The best way to prove that all human beings are fallible is to start proclaiming that some are infallible. Pride comes before a fall. Straight after the funeral I flew to Canberra and was struck by the difference between the respectful and open discussion over a cup of tea with family and friends, and the censorship culture that has overtaken our nation's capital. Read more

Australian politics is obsessed with a target to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Like so many political decisions, it is being sold as a sea of righteousness with no rocks. Climate politics has many quasi-religious aspects to it which, like many religions, breeds a cynicism at times, especially when the religion is forced on you. Absolute beliefs that tolerate no dissent; absolute belief, devoid of a highly scientific understanding by most followers. Compliance and tithings to a dogmatic sermon. Every word accepted as sacred and underwritten with hellish climate damnation if not adhered to. This religion also requires people to speak to you from the other side as many of the politicians and commentators talking about a 2050 aspiration will be dead by then. They won’t have to deal with the economic consequences or pay for the policy. Further, just as COVID-19 has hit us from left field in the past year, lots of other issues will emerge between now and 10 federal elections away. Read more

In the 1970s the Federal Government backed the building of a coal fired power station in Gladstone that would power a new aluminium smelter at Boyne Island. Even the Labor leader at the time, Gough Whitlam, backed the plan telling Parliament that "power was the determining factor in the development of natural resources in the area and the attraction of greater human resources to the area." That decision has created thousands of jobs in Central Queensland and expanded Australia's industrial strength. We are a significant producer of aluminium and the world's largest exporter of bauxite and alumina - the products that are converted into aluminium. The last decade, however, has seen a decline in our capacity to convert raw materials into finished goods. Since 2007, our production of bauxite has increased by more than 50 per cent, yet our aluminium production has fallen by 20 per cent. Read more

I was on the Paul Murray show this week and Labor MP Joel Fitzgibbon put forward the view that we should move the date of Australia Day because there are enough people upset about the current date. How many people are enough? A poll out this week shows that just 28 per cent of Australians think the date should be moved. So why should a minority of Australians get to dictate when our national day is? The reason given is that even though this group is in the minority they are upset enough that this should overturn the views of the larger group of Australians who want to continue the tradition. This would in effect give a greater weight to the views of some Australians over others. That is not the right way to make decisions in a democracy. All Australians should have their views given equal weight. Read more

As China has blocked more Australian exports over the past year, we have been implored to trust the international rules-based trading system. That used to mean something. After World War II, countries did sign many international trading agreements that opened up an era of free trade not seen since the 19th century. However, since China joined the World Trade Organisation the rules of the system have been stretched to breaking point. China has subsidised its industries well beyond what was allowed under the terms of its ascension to the WTO. For example, the Alliance for American Manufacturing estimates 80 per cent of the profits of Chinese steel producers come from government subsidies. China’s flouting of the rules has caused others to do the same. An increasing array of tariffs and protection have been introduced in response to China’s subsidy-fuelled growth. Read more

I only have one recommendation for the Rockhampton mayoral election this Saturday. Number as many boxes as you can! Don’t waste your vote by just voting 1 for your preferred candidate. With 17 candidates in the field, unless your preferred candidate finishes in the top 2, then if you just vote 1, youwon’t get a vote between the final two candidates. The more boxes you number, the more chance you have that someone you voted for makes it to the final two. Read more