- Fringe climate implosion will kill jobs, spook investors and damage Australia
- Energy transition jobs, projects and industries at risk
17 November 2025 – The Liberal Party's decision to turn its back on climate action will kill jobs, repel capital, and relegate our nation to a backwater should it ever become government policy, electrical workers have warned.
The warning comes after a reported 60 percent of Liberal MPs advocated against climate action during a marathon crisis meeting at Parliament on Wednesday.
This was followed by an announcement at the weekend that the Coalition would abandon the pathway for our grid and would derail regulatory paths to carbon reduction through low-cost renewable energy in Australia's energy systems if elected.
ETU National Secretary Michael Wright said Opposition Leader Sussan Ley had put the National Party and far-right lobby group Advance ahead of Australia and its people.
"Our energy transition is creating thousands of jobs for young Australians and standing up new industries that will underpin national prosperity and competitiveness for the coming decades," Mr Wright said.
"Around the world investment, research and development is pouring into energy transition. That's where the money is going and that's where the jobs are being created.
"Unambiguously, there are problems with the transition – none of those problems get solved by this dog's breakfast of a policy. Jeopardising projects, risking jobs, destroying sector confidence – this just drives up power prices and puts our grid on a knife's edge.
"Watching this public meltdown spit out a decision to walk away from climate action is a baffling experience for the electrical workers, who are getting on with wiring our nation into the future economy and wondering WTF the Liberal Party is doing and what it stands for.
"Sussan Ley put 10 rural MPs whose party has been eaten from the inside by the fossil fuel lobby ahead of the millions of Australians she hopes to govern.
"lf investors think Australia could be held hostage by a delusional junior coalition partner they will go elsewhere. That will kill the jobs, projects and opportunities our members, their families and their communities depend on.
"The futures of our members, their families, their communities and their country is at risk today because Sussan Ley, Andrew Bragg, Tim Wilson and the other Liberals who claim to believe in climate action chose not to grow a spine, take a break from texting the press gallery and stand up to Barnaby's band of lizard people just one time."
