Antinuclear

Coalition to put nuclear plan on the chopping block

Ryan Cropp Energy and climate reporter, May 4, 2025, https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/coalition-to-put-nuclear-plan-on-the-chopping-block-20250504-p5lwcw

The Coalition’s nuclear energy policy looks set to be one of the first casualties of the party’s monumental election defeat on Saturday after opposition MPs declined to publicly back the controversial strategy.

Dutton had used the policy as a means of aligning the party behind a commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050, but several senior Liberals on Sunday indicated the party would need to consider dumping the plan if it were to find a path back to government.

Dutton announced the proposal to build seven government-owned nuclear reactors in July last year, but on Saturday the plan proved to be a major electoral liability, particularly in key metropolitan seats.

When asked whether the Coalition should dump its nuclear plans, Liberal frontbencher Keith Wolahan said Australians had sent a message and the party needed to listen.

“It wouldn’t be fair on me to dissect that particular policy, but everything should be on the table and that should be analysed,” Wolahan told the ABC.

“We have to listen to Australians. They have sent us a message. And our first task is to hear it. And that often takes time.”

Wolahan is one of several Liberal moderates who have lost their seats. Others include Michael Sukkar in Deakin and David Coleman in Banks.

Policy toxic in inner urban seats

The lack of public support for the plan was exploited mercilessly by Labor throughout the campaign. The government repeatedly claimed the plants would cost up to $600 billion to build and would need to be paid for by cuts to key social services.

Dutton failed to visit a single one of his proposed nuclear sites during the campaign.

The policy proved particularly toxic in inner-urban and suburban seats in Sydney and Melbourne, where Liberal challengers failed to make any inroads against climate-friendly teal independents.

Six candidates backed by Simon Holmes a Court’s Climate 200 crowdfunding organisation in 2022 were re-elected, while teal challenger Nicolette Boele looks set to take the blue-ribbon Liberal seat of Bradfield.

Dutton’s loss in his own seat of Dickson was based, in part, on preference flows from Climate 200-backed independent Ellie Smith, which went to Labor’s Ali France. Elsewhere, lower-profile Climate 200 candidates in seats such as Sturt in South Australia, Casey in Victoria and Forrest in WA peeled votes off Liberals and put Labor MPs in winning or winnable positions.

Nationals leader David Littleproud denied that nuclear was to blame for the Coalition’s election defeat, but did not rule out dumping the policy.

“I don’t think nuclear was the reason we lost. I think this was a schmick campaign by Labor destroying Peter Dutton,” Littleproud told Sky News. “We’ll sit down, obviously, after this and work through the policy positions and make sure they’re fit for purpose and fit for the future.”

The Coalition’s attempt to exploit local opposition to offshore wind farms also appears to have backfired, with two-party preferred swings to Labor in key coastal seats including Paterson, Gilmore and Whitlam in NSW and Forrest in WA. In Wannon in Victoria, however, Liberal frontbencher and potential leadership contender Dan Tehan saw off Climate 200 contender Alex Dyson, in part off the back of strong opposition to a proposed offshore wind farm in the region.

Asked on Saturday if the Coalition should stick with nuclear power, Tehan also left the door open to axe the policy.

“What we need is a proper review – a proper review of all the policies, a proper review of how we campaigned. And we have to do that over a period of time,” he said. “Everything should be part of the review.”

In the western NSW electorate of Calare, where the Coalition’s proposed Mount Piper nuclear plant was to be built, former Nationals MP Andrew Gee won his seat running as an independent. Gee has expressed scepticism about nuclear, which one poll suggested had as little as 22 per cent support in the region.

Ryan Cropp is an energy and climate reporter at The Australian Financial Review based in the Canberra bureau.

May 4, 2025 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics