FUEL CRISIS

Chris Bowen told Parliament Australia's fuel reserves are at fifteen-year highs. Thirty-four days of diesel. The international standard is ninety days, and Australia has not met that benchmark since 2012.

The fuel exists. Ships are sitting in the harbour and the Melbourne terminal has supply, but refineries are rationing independent distributors, the ones who supply regional Australia, to keep Shell and Ampol topped up on their contract volumes. A truck carries 55,000 litres and can only do one run a day on the fourteen-hour Melbourne-to-Griffith turnaround, while city depots are running five loads a day. Country distributors are being told to wait, and farmers do not have that luxury.

Diesel in Murray is set to hit three dollars a litre by tomorrow, with autumn sowing weeks away. If seeding shuts down, every Australian pays the price at the supermarket.

Australia imports ninety per cent of its refined fuel and went from a dozen refineries in the 1970s to two. We import over two million tonnes of fertiliser a year and the government urea stockpile covers five weeks. You cannot grow food without fuel and you cannot grow food without fertiliser. These are not optional inputs, they are the foundation of national food security.

Australia needs a fuel reserve scheme and domestic urea manufacturing. Chris Bowen has the power to direct fair fuel allocation. He has chosen reassurance over action. Murray feeds this country. Start acting like it matters.