How the coal lobby gamed the NSW election
On 23 March 2019, the NSW Liberal/National Coalition was re-elected for its third term of government. Climate change featured heavily throughout the election, with the Coalition coming under heavy criticism for its lack of credible policies to reduce carbon emissions.
For those not familiar with New South Wales, it is not only Australia’s most populous and economically productive state, but it’s also home to one of Australia’s largest coal basins, which exported more than 164 million tonnes of coal in 2018.
The NSW Minerals Council (NSWMC) is the peak mining body in the state, representing the vast majority of coal mining companies and their service providers. Its CEO Stephen Galilee is a former chief of staff to Mike Baird, when he was NSW Treasurer.
NSWMC’s largest members include global giants BHP Group, Glencore, Peabody Energy and South32 as well as local players Centennial Coal, New Hope Group and Whitehaven Coal.
Below we lay out how the NSWMC sought to influence political parties and voters throughout the NSW election campaign. It was a strategy that was ultimately successful, with the Coalition re-elected, despite many pundits tipping a hung parliament. The NSWMC was richly rewarded, with the Resources ministry stripped from climate hawk Don Harwin and moved to the leader of the NSW Nationals Party and Deputy Premier, John Barilaro.
This is a story of how the coal lobby still runs NSW.
18 December 2018: The NSW Energy Minister, Don Harwin, broke ranks with the federal government, restating the government’s target for “net zero emissions by 2050”.
19 December 2018: The NSWMC argued that the target will have “no measurable impact on the global climate”, and would put the NSW economy and jobs at risk.
28 January 2019: The NSWMC declared “we can determine who wins” the NSW state election.
29 January 2019: The NSWMC released its “2019 State Election Policies Priorities Manifesto”, demanding among other things:
- support for coal mining and the NSW coal sector;
- government subsidies for carbon, capture and storage;
- avoidance of renewable energy targets;
- that parties rule out power sharing with the NSW Greens.
31 January 2019: The NSWMC criticised AGL Energy’s plans to close and replace the Liddell coal-fired power station, stating “if we are on the brink now, we’ll be over the cliff when Liddell shuts down.”
31 January 2019: The NSW Energy Minister, Don Harwin circulated a memo asking federal and state ministers to rewrite national energy laws to force states to meet emissions reduction targets.
2 February 2019: The NSWMC’s Stephen Galilee responded to Harwin’s memo, expressing concern about any attempt to increase Australia’s emissions target beyond our Paris commitments by stealth “because of the potential impact on energy prices, our economy and jobs”.
7 February 2019: The NSWMC welcomed the NSW Minerals Strategy (which omits any reference to coal & gas, i.e. business as usual).
8 February 2019: The NSWMC rejected the idea that the Rocky Hill decision was a landmark in climate litigation.
16 February 2019: The NSWMC said NSW is well-placed to grab a share of increased Asian demand for thermal coal, despite inconsistencies with the Paris Agreement.
18 February 2019: The NSWMC said mining companies spent $10.7 billion in NSW in 2017/18, arguing that hundreds of local businesses in Western Sydney (home to many key swing seats) are part of the mining supply chain.
18 February 2019: The NSWMC letterboxed households in the Upper Hunter with advertising claiming that Greens policies will shut down local mining and energy industries.
21 February 2019: The NSWMC claimed coal’s future is bright despite Glencore announcing a cap on coal production, following investor pressure.
11–12 March 2019: The NSWMC arranged for radio station 2GB to broadcast from a working coal mine, operated by Centennial Coal.
NSWMC CEO Stephen Galilee warned against relying on renewable energy, suggesting it should be supported by coal-fired power stations.
12 March 2019: In a revealing moment, former Deputy PM Barnaby Joyce tweeted claiming that Labor and the Greens “put up power prices”, tagging the NSWMC.
14 March 2019: In an opinion piece for Sydney’s Daily Telegraph, NSWMC CEO Stephen Galilee claimed “strong growth in Asian demand for our coal through to 2040”, and warned that “we can’t afford” for the NSW Greens to hold the balance of power.
15 March 2019: The NSWMC published the responses to its Election Policy Manifesto, noting that both the Coalition and Labor ruled out any form of power sharing arrangement with the NSW Greens.
19 March 2019: In an opinion piece for the Newcastle Herald, Stephen Galilee once again claimed “strong growth in Asian demand for our coal through to 2040”, but failed to mention that the IEA’s New Policies Scenario would deliver more than 4 degrees of global warming.
22 March 2019: The Guardian revealed that the NSWMC met with NSW government ministers 61 times between 2015 and 2019.
23 March 2019: NSW STATE ELECTION
2 April 2019: Climate hawk Don Harwin is stripped of the Resources and Energy and Utilities portfolios. The NSWMC welcomed the shift of the Resources portfolio to Deputy Premier John Barilaro, as “he understands” the importance of the mining sector.
POST SCRIPT
5 April 2019: Former Liberal party MLC Peter Phelps claimed that the government’s zero emissions target will be abandoned.
So, what can you do about this? Well, your super fund is likely to be invested in the NSW Minerals Council’s member companies: BHP Group, Glencore, New Hope Group, Newcrest Mining, South32 and Whitehaven Coal.
Contacting your super fund would be a very good place to start.
