I rise today with some great news for the Newcastle community. The petroleum exploration permit known as PEP-11 has been formally rejected, putting an end to the decade-long threat of oil and gas off our precious coast.
More than 75,000 people signed petitions to stop PEP-11. So when Labor's Minister for Industry and Science formally rejected the applications, there was a huge collective sigh of relief. PEP-11 has no friends in Newcastle. Our community's message has been loud, clear and consistent for over a decade: PEP-11 is not welcome-not in Sydney, not on the Central Coast and certainly not in Newcastle. This project never made sense-economically, environmentally or from an energy standpoint. It endangered local jobs in tourism, hospitality and fishing. This could have been resolved years ago had the former Liberal government followed due process. I'm pleased that the Albanese Labor government worked methodically to reach this decision.
I thank the Newcastle community for its patience and advocacy. In particular, I'd like to give a big shout-out to Natasha Dean and the fabulous Save Our Coast team, and acknowledge the tireless efforts of Josh Kirkman and the Surf Riders Foundation for leading the community fight against PEP-11. I'm honoured to have taken up this fight on your behalf. The minister's rejection of PEP-11 is a huge win, and I thank Novocastrians for their strong and steadfast advocacy.
