RUBY:

From Schwartz Media, I’m Ruby Jones, this is 7am.

Scott Morrison has spent the week unpicking himself from Abbott-era policies - first on climate change, and now on the national broadband network.

It’s a delicate balance for the prime minister - between what the public needs and what some in his party want.
Today - columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno on new roadmaps and old problems.

RUBY:

Paul, when did the NBN problems begin?

PAUL:

Well, Ruby, when you think about it - what happened to the NBN - there's only one key person to focus on, and that's Tony Abbott.

Archival tape -- Tony Abott:

“-well, a-a-again, um I-I...I know politicians are gonna be judged on everything they say.”

PAUL:

Eight years ago, when Mr Abbott was the newly minted opposition leader, he proclaimed Australia didn't need the National Broadband Network.

Archival tape -- Tony Abott:

“Why spend 50 billion dollars on a national broadband network just so customers can subsequently spend almost three times their current monthly fee for speeds they might not need?”

PAUL:

For Tony Abbott, an upgraded internet, with fibre to the premises, was just so people could better watch movies and play games.

Archival tape -- Tony Abott:

“Why dig up every street when fibre to the node could more swiftly and more affordably deliver 21st century broadband.”

PAUL:

And then Abbott assigned his shadow communications minister, Malcolm Turnbull, to demolish the Labour government's expensive indulgence. Malcolm Turnbull at least was able to convince his leader that wasn't a completely good idea, and he came up with a compromise instead.

Archival tape -- Malcolm Turnbull:

“As Tony has said, our commitment is to deliver very fast broadband to all Australians sooner, cheaper, and more affordably.”

PAUL:

The Turnbull plan, which rather than delivering fibre to every home, used fibre optic cable to junction boxes in suburbs, and they're called nodes, and then reverted to century old copper wire technology to deliver signal to premises. Unfortunately, the plan Turnbull cooked up has left the nation in 2020 with a woefully inadequate service that's left millions of consumers frustrated and angry.

RUBY:

And that brings us to this week's announcement poll. What is the government proposing now?

PAUL:

Well, Communications Minister Paul Fletcher announced a 4.5 billion billion spend over the next couple of years.

Archival tape -- Paul Fletcher:

“This is a major investment, but it is a logical extension of the NBN’s path to-date.”

PAUL:

And this, he says, will give about 10 million households and businesses the option of ultra high speed fibre connections.

Archival tape -- Paul Fletcher:

“The next stage for NBN, that we’ve announced today, with 8 million homes and businesses, including 90% of all businesses in Australia able to have 1 gigabit per second blazing fast broadband by 2023…”

PAUL:

Now the twist is, Ruby, that to achieve this, the government is reverting to the key feature of the Rudd government's plan of running high speed fibre cables down the streets to connect free of charge to homes who want it. But there's even a catch here, they’ll connect it free of charge only after you've signed up to a very expensive new monthly agreement.

RUBY:

Mm. So are we essentially going back to Labor's original NBN vision from 2009 then?

PAUL:

Well, essentially, that's right. And think about the waste that's occurred in the last eight years as a result. The vice president of the Telecommunications Society of Australia, Laurie Patton, a long time trenchant critic of the Abbott-Turnbull hybrid, says Australia has wasted billions of dollars on a dud technology that's left a third of the country behind in a digitally enabled world.

RUBY:

And this has brought Malcolm Turnbull out this week - to defend his legacy, but also have a shot at his old party.

PAUL:

Yeah - Turnbull on Tuesday was stoutly defending himself and the government over the NBN, he was also spectacularly attacking the government over its new policies on the environment, on climate and energy.

Archival tape -- Malcolm Turnbull:

“People are just...they are punch drunk with these random interventions from government. It's got to stop. We just need a coherent energy and climate policy…”

PAUL:

On Wednesday, the former prime minister was scathing about Scott Morrison's announcements of a gas led recovery and technology roadmap. Sitting in his Point Piper study Turnbull told Patricia Karvelas on Afternoon Briefing that the government's just unveiled energy plans were crazy and a fantasy.

Archival tape -- Malcolm Turnbull:

“Well, the whole announcement last week was, you know it. I'm not going to sing the song, but. It's a gas, gas, gas. I mean, that was the. That's what it was. It was crazy. I mean, seriously, we have got to stop…(rant fades under)”

RUBY:

We'll be back in a moment.

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RUBY:

Paul, let's talk about the government's new energy roadmap. The energy minister, Angus Taylor, he unveiled his policy this week. So what is it?

Archival tape -- Angus Taylor:

“Today is an important day in the advancement of our emissions reduction agenda that will strengthen the economy and create jobs.”

PAUL:

Well, Ruby, we saw on Tuesday Taylor give priority to five technologies he claimed would lower emissions. The technologies he singled out were: hydrogen to be made from either gas or renewable energy, batteries for storing energy, low carbon steel and aluminium, carbon capture and storage, and sinking carbon into the soil.

Archival tape -- Angus Taylor:

“This Statement sets economic stretch goals for each of these technologies, stretch goals which are competitive with higher emitting alternatives.”

PAUL:

Now, two of these chosen technologies are particularly controversial, carbon capture and storage and soil carbon - there are significant doubts about the application of carbon capture and storage or CCS, and whether its cost can be brought down to economical levels and whether it can scale up.

RUBY:

But no renewables then like solar or wind in that plan?

PAUL:

Well, no Ruby. As far as the government's concerned, renewables don't need any more help. And if you look at the five areas that have been signalled out, in fact, they all extend the use of fossil fuels through preference for gas over coal but coal is still in there.

Archival tape -- Angus Taylor:

“We, as a people, don't always go on to the world stage and crow about our achievements, but we should be proud of them. Our track record is one of quiet achievement. And our plan is based on balance and outcomes - not ideology.”

RUBY:

And so what does this plan mean for emissions reductions, Paul?

PAUL:

Well, the problem with the plan is there are no benchmarks beyond the 26 per cent emissions reduction target on 2005 levels by 2030. There was no commitment from Taylor to an end goal of net zero emissions by 2050. And as Malcolm Turnbull pointed out, nobody believes that the targets that we've committed to to 2030 are anywhere near up to the task to get to net zero by 2050. And in fact, it's not only Taylor who's fudging here. Scott Morrison, on Sunday, in a pre-recorded interview on Insiders three times refused to commit to the 2050 target.

Archival tape -- Scott Morrison:

“Well, as you know, our policy is to achieve that in the second half of this century. And I would certainly achieve that. And that's why this week's announcements were so important, because it was about the technology we need to invest in now, which will make it a reality…”

PAUL:

He, like Taylor, is now defining the Paris climate agreement in vague terms of net zero by the second half of the century. Y’know, what: 2099? That's how vague it is.

RUBY:

So, Paul, does this announcement from the energy minister in this new plan, does it signal that the Morrison government is moving away from coal?

PAUL:

Well, Ruby, I certainly think it does, and backing this conviction is a report by Philip Coorey in The Australian Financial Review, in fact, three years ago. That report is that Morrison has long realised that cheap new coal fired power is, in his own words, a myth. And this was based on a leaked recording given to Coorey of an address Morrison made to the Wombat Hollow Forum in the New South Wales Southern Highlands.

That forum is run by Michael Yabsley, a key ally of none other than Malcolm Turnbull. Well, at the time, Treasurer Morrison was trying to help Turnbull out and he was debunking Abbott's clean coal - Morrison at the time said that clean coal, no such thing exists and that so-called high efficiency, low emission power stations are too expensive to build and to run.

RUBY:

And clean coal was very much of Tony Abbott's era. Scott Morrison has been grappling with his legacy, Abbott's legacy a bit this week.

PAUL:

Well, that's exactly right. When you think about it both with the climate and energy and with the national broadband, it's clear that the former prime minister's judgement on both these things led to costly and embarrassing failures, not only for the government, but I'd have to say for the nation. But it's also clear to me that the legacy of the Abbott years is only half buried.

Morrison's road map has a vague destination and that's, I believe, mainly to obfuscate and to cover up his dalliance with fossil fuels. Anthony Albanese, the Labor leader, says without a destination, it's a roadmap to nowhere. Now, mind you, Ruby, the Labor Leader might have a clear 2050 destination, but so far he hasn't settled on his road map. So it seems to me Abbott has spooked more than his own side.

RUBY:

One way of looking at this is that Scott Morrison is cleaning up some messes of Tony Abbott's making. But is he also, in doing this, trying to differentiate himself from Tony Abbott and Tony Abbott's style of leadership?

PAUL:

Well, yes, he is. But it's because Tony Abbott got it so wrong. And at the time when Abbott was dismantling, for example, the price on carbon, calling it a carbon tax; at the time when he was sowing doubt about belief and ridiculing the climate science; he was out of touch with the electorate, certainly out of touch with the needs of Australia and the planet.

Well, Morrison realises time has moved on; the electorate has, too. And as we said last week, the people who vote for the Liberal Party, particularly in metropolitan Australia, well they want more climate action. So I think it's more to do with Morrison trying to move away from the Abbott prescriptions and show voters that he's up with what's actually going on. He's moved beyond the arguments of eight years ago.

RUBY:

Paul, thank you so much for your time today.

PAUL:

Thank you, Ruby. Bye.

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RUBY:

Also in the news today…

The Victorian Health Minister Jenny Mikakos has told the inquiry examining hotel quarantine that she does not know who suggested and approved the use of private security guards.

Earlier in the week the Jobs MInister and Police Minister also told the inquiry they did not know who was ultimately responsible for the decision.

And the Queensland government has lifted restrictions in the south-east of the state, with residents able to host up to 30 people at their homes from tonight.

7am is a daily show from The Monthly and The Saturday Paper. It’s produced by Ruby Schwartz, Atticus Bastow, and Michelle Macklem.

Elle Marsh is our features and field producer, in a position supported by the Judith Neilson Institute for Journalism and Ideas.

Brian Campeau mixes the show. Our editor is Osman Faruqi. Erik Jensen is our editor-in-chief.
Our theme music is by Ned Beckley and Josh Hogan of Envelope Audio.

New episodes of 7am are released every weekday morning. Subscribe in your favourite podcast app, to make sure you don’t miss out.

I’m Ruby Jones, see you next week.