Andrew Leigh

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP 
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury 

Opinion Piece

Success requires innovation

Published in The West Australian

13 November 2025

Mining has helped shape modern Australia. It has supported regional communities, strengthened our export earnings, and contributed to the public services Australians rely on. It remains our most productive sector. For every hour worked, mining produces more economic value than any other part of the economy. That is not because miners work longer hours, but because the sector has consistently embraced technology, world-class engineering and coordinated logistics at extraordinary scale.

As the global economy shifts, mining’s role changing. The world is reworking energy systems and expanding supply chains for the minerals that underpin electrification. Global partners are asking where they can source these materials reliably and responsibly. Australia has an important role to play. We have geological abundance, strong institutions and a reputation for meeting contract obligations. These advantages do not guarantee future success. They are starting points that must be reinforced by continued innovation, training and investment.

Mining productivity has never been static. Between 2011 and 2017, mining productivity grew significantly as companies invested in automation and systems integration. Remote operations centres allowed teams in Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide to coordinate equipment hundreds of kilometres away. Autonomous haul trucks and real-time data monitoring reshaped how mines were run. Yet in recent years, productivity has declined. Higher input costs, supply chain disruptions and labour shortages have all played a role. This variation is not unusual. Productivity tends to rise when new capital and new technology mature. It slows when cost pressures tighten or when operations become more geologically complex. The question is how to position the sector to capture the next wave of growth.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP 
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury 

The Productivity Beneath Our Feet: Mining’s Role in Australia’s Economic Future 

Energy and Minerals Tax Conference 2025,
Brisbane 

Thursday, 13 November 2025

Thank you for the invitation to speak today. I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we meet, the Turrbal and Jagera peoples, and pay respects to Elders past and present. I also recognise the many First Nations people whose lands underpin Australia’s resources industry.

Mining takes place on Country. That brings responsibilities. Across the sector, companies and communities are working together on land use agreements, cultural heritage protection, jobs pathways, procurement partnerships and joint ventures. There is more to do, and expectations are rightly high. Strong relationships with Traditional Owners are central to earning and maintaining the social licence that underpins long-term operations and shared economic benefit.

Mining has shaped modern Australia. It has supported generations of workers and communities. It has helped build export markets. It has underpinned national revenue, infrastructure and public services. Mining is the most productive sector in our economy. For every hour worked, mining generates more economic value than any other sector, reflecting advanced technology, skilled labour and the capacity to organise complex operations at scale.

When we talk about the future of the Australian economy, mining is vital to the conversation. Not only because it comprises a large share of national output, but because of the scale of the opportunities ahead. The world is shifting its energy systems. Supply chains are being redesigned. Demand for critical minerals is rising. And global expectations around environmental responsibility and reliability in supply are increasing, not declining.

In that context, Australia has genuine strategic advantages: stable institutions, geological abundance, deep technical expertise, and a reputation as a dependable trading partner. The question for us is how to use these advantages to expand economic opportunity, strengthen competitiveness and support long-term prosperity.

Today I want to explore three themes.

First, mining as a driver of productivity and economic dynamism.

Second, innovation as the engine of mining’s next phase.

Third, the government’s role in supporting investment, capability and future growth.

The argument is straightforward. The next decade will offer substantial opportunities for Australia’s mining sector. Our task, together, is to ensure that the sector is positioned to seize them.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
TV INTERVIEW
ABC AFTERNOON BRIEFING WITH PATRICIA KARVELAS
TUESDAY, 11 NOVEMBER 2025

SUBJECTS: Four-year parliamentary terms, energy prices, productivity and non-competes, Air T’s acquiring of Rex, housing, Nauru

PATRICIA KARVELAS: To the government now. Andrew Leigh is the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition and Charities and joins me now. Hello!

ANDREW LEIGH: G’day Patricia, great to be with you.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: I want to start where it ended, because thematically it makes sense to me, although I don’t think it’s the biggest thing that’s happening in the country right now but I do want to ask you, John Howard reckons that your Prime Minister, our Prime Minister, the country’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese should do a deal essentially with Sussan Ley and agree to try and push this four-year parliamentary term. Do you think that’s a good idea, that it should be pursued?

ANDREW LEIGH: Well, Labor’s got a longstanding commitment to four-year terms. We of course took it to a referendum in 1988 and it was voted down because the Coalition then decided to pursue cheap political opportunism rather than national interest. We’ve now got a situation where every state and territory has moved to four-year terms and it’s the Commonwealth that’s looking the odd one out. So, yes it would be in the interest of the country. It would allow more stability having fixed terms. It would also take away some of the uncertainty. But of course, it requires bipartisan support to get through at a referendum. And unless we’re locked in with that bipartisan support, I don’t think there’d be any point in trying.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
2CC RADIO CANBERRA, BREAKFAST WITH STEPHEN CENATIEMPO
TUESDAY, 11 NOVEMBER 2025

SUBJECTS: Net Zero, bulk billing, antisemitism

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Alright let's talk federal politics with the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury, and the Member for Fenner, Andrew Leigh. Andrew, good morning.

ANDREW LEIGH: Good morning, Stephen. I'm surprised. I thought you'd be going for the former 2CC host as leader of the Canberra Liberals.

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: I call it how I see it Andrew, and I imagine the more sensible people on your side of politics know that without a viable Opposition, you're not going to be the best government you can be either.

ANDREW LEIGH: That's right, certainly a good Opposition is essential to democracy. And yes, sadly at a federal and ACT level, the Liberals are more concerned about themselves than about the people.

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Yeah, it's one of those things that will annoy the electorate more than anything is when you talk about yourself and not about them. And you know, if we look at what's going on federally at the moment, all of the focus is on net zero. And now I imagine you and I are going to disagree on the policy of net zero, but all of the polling says it's not even registering with voters. They're worried about cost of living, cost of living, cost of living.

ANDREW LEIGH: Well, it's become a proxy as to whether you're serious about climate change and you know, of course, people know that Scott Morrison put in place the net zero policy in October 2021 alongside over 70 percent of the world's GDP and emissions, every business group in Australia and every State and Territory. So, you are stepping a long way outside the mainstream when you're against net zero.

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: But isn't that the problem with this debate that it has become a proxy for action on climate change because it's not ‑ even you've got to admit there's more than one way to skin a cat?

ANDREW LEIGH: Oh, absolutely. But you know, I'm speaking to a Minerals Council of Australia event on Thursday and the mining industry is committed to net zero. You know, this is hardly a far-left communist plot; this is a mainstream policy accepted by conservatives in countries like Britain, Germany and New Zealand, and which…

The Hon Suzanne Orr MLA
Minister for Climate Change, Environment, Energy and Water 

The Hon Chris Bowen MP
Minister for Climate Change and Energy

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury
Member for Fenner

Neighbourhood batteries power up as part of Big Canberra Battery Project

10 November 2025

The ACT Government is building the energy infrastructure our growing city needs to reach net zero with the launch of the Casey Neighbourhood Battery.

The launch marks another important milestone in the rollout of the Big Canberra Battery Project and the ACT’s energy transition as we electrify our city.

The Casey Neighbourhood Battery has an energy-storage capacity of 225kWh and a maximum power output of 110kW, which can power up to 86 nearby households that are connected to the electrical sub-station adjacent to the battery.

The battery joins similar batteries in Dickson and Fadden, forming a growing network of neighbourhood-scale energy storage solutions across the ACT.

Delivered in partnership with Evoenergy, these three batteries are part of the ACT Government’s Big Canberra Battery project and are funded through the Australian Government’s Community Batteries for Household Solar Program. Additional funding has also been provided by Evoenergy to support the installation of these batteries.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC RADIO CANBERRA, AFTERNOONS WITH ALICE MATTHEWS
MONDAY, 10 NOVEMBER 2025

SUBJECTS: Albanese Government helping farmers and fresh food suppliers get a fairer deal when selling to supermarkets

ALICE MATTHEWS: ABC Radio Canberra, this is Afternoons and we know that Coles and Woolies are among the most profitable supermarkets in the world. The big question being, how do we tackle their market dominance? A couple of hours ago, the federal government announced the launch of a new program that they say will help fresh produce suppliers stand up to these big supermarkets by providing $2 million in grants to address this market power imbalance via education programs. Dr Andrew Leigh is the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury. Dr Leigh, good afternoon to you.

ANDREW LEIGH: Good afternoon Alice, great to be with you.

ALICE MATTHEWS: Walk me through the details of what you've announced this morning?

ANDREW LEIGH: Well, last year we toughened up the supermarket code of conduct. Under the Coalition it had no penalties. Under Labor it now has multi-million-dollar penalties for supermarkets who do the wrong thing by suppliers. We want suppliers to be informed of their rights and able to go toe-to-toe with the big supermarkets in order to get a fair deal for farmers. These grants will allow those suppliers to fully enforce the new rights that they have, thanks to Labor and the new mandatory supermarket code.

ALICE MATTHEWS: And when you say suppliers, you're talking about the farmers here?

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
DOORSTOP
CASEY, ACT
MONDAY, 10 NOVEMBER 2025

SUBJECTS: Launch of the Casey Neighbourhood Battery funded through the Australian Government’s Community Batteries for Household Solar Program

SUZANNE ORR: Thanks everyone for being here. By taking off that additional capacity within the generator from solar and storing it, we can use it at more hours of the day, not just when the sun is out. So, a really important part of our ever growing and diversifying electricity network is ensuring that we can really get the full benefits of renewables, and thank you to AGL and everyone for putting this together – this is helping us get to Net Zero. It’s exciting to see this lovely box sitting here. We would like to thank them for their support, for helping us do it. So, I’ll leave my remarks there. It is an Australian Government funded battery, so I would like to thank them for their contribution towards the grant helping us do it. I’ll hand over to my colleague Andrew Leigh, the Member for Fenner to say a few words. And if Kalara wants to say anything about the artwork I’ll just put her on the spot.

ANDREW LEIGH: Thanks very much Suzanne. And I too acknowledge the Ngunnawal people on the lands we’re gathered today. At the 2022 election, Labor announced that we'd be putting in place three community batteries in Dickson, Fadden and in Casey. We did that because we understand that batteries are an important part of the renewables transition. Just as we need dams because it doesn't always rain, we need batteries because the sun isn’t always shining and the wind isn’t always blowing. You can see around you a whole lot of houses with solar panels on their roofs, and as we get to the middle of the day, we're going to get to a point at which there is sufficient capacity from renewables that we won't need anything else.

The Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury
Member for Fenner

New Facilities For Staff And Students At Taqwa School 

10 November 2025

Member for Fenner Andrew Leigh today opened a new two-storey extension at Taqwa School, marking a significant investment in the learning environment of local students.

The project received $702,613 in Australian Government support through the Capital Grants Program, helping to deliver four new classrooms and additional administration spaces.

Assistant Minister Leigh said the upgraded facilities would make a meaningful difference to daily life at the school.

“A school’s environment shapes how young people learn, collaborate and grow. This extension gives Taqwa School modern, practical spaces that reflect the ambition of its students and teachers,” Assistant Minister Leigh said.

“This community has put great care and effort into building a place where learning is encouraged and curiosity thrives. These new rooms will help the school continue that work today and for many years to come.”

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

The Hon Julie Collins MP
Minister for Agriculture

The Hon Dr Anne Aly MP
Minister for Small Business
Minister for International Development
Minister for Multicultural Affairs

Standing Up For Farmers: New Grants Help Suppliers Take On The Supermarket Giants

10 November 2025

The Albanese Government is helping farmers and fresh food suppliers get a fairer deal when selling to supermarkets.

Today, the Government is launching the Supporting Fresh Produce Suppliers – Food and Grocery Code Education Program, providing $2 million in grants to help fresh produce suppliers gain the skills they need to stand up to the big supermarkets.

This Program builds on the Government’s broader efforts to address the market power imbalance between fresh produce suppliers and large supermarkets while ensuring there are penalties for any wrongdoing.

This includes making the Food and Grocery Code mandatory from 1 April 2025 and committing to implement the ACCC’s supermarket pricing and competition report recommendations.

Under the Program, eligible industry associations are able to apply for grants to develop and deliver national education programs that provide smaller fresh produce suppliers with the tools and confidence to negotiate better deals with major grocery retailers.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP 
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury 

The Next Chapter for Australia’s Charities

Speech To The Australian Charities And Not-For-Profits Commission All-Staff Meeting,
Melbourne

Friday, 7 November 2025

Good morning everyone and thank you for having me. I acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung and Bunurong / Boon Wurrung peoples of the Kulin Nation, and all First Nations people present today.

It is great to be back with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission team, the people who underpin Australia’s trust in the charitable sector.

Every time I speak with you, I am reminded that while the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission’s work might not always make the front page, it helps sustain the institutions that hold our society together. You are the quiet custodians of public confidence, the reason Australians can give, volunteer and partner with charities knowing those organisations are accountable and well-governed.

A Sector that Matters

Australia’s 65,000 registered charities are as diverse as the people they serve. They feed the hungry, preserve the environment, keep the arts alive and offer comfort in crisis. They are the sports coaches, the shelter workers, the conservationists and the advocates giving voice to those who might otherwise go unheard.

In total, the sector employs over one in ten Australian workers and mobilises the energy of millions of volunteers. It is a remarkable engine of social connection and compassion. And it functions well because you make sure it can be trusted.

Strengthening the Foundations

Since coming into government in 2022, we have worked to strengthen those foundations. We have improved the deductible gift recipient system, so community foundations, the backbone of local philanthropy, can now access tax-deductible status through a clear new pathway.