Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has emphatically rejected the nuclear plan for Victoria, writing to Peter Dutton outlining how she would not negotiate with him to overturn a state ban on the nuclear energy. In Gippsland the decision to build a plant near Traralgon has divided locals. While some welcome the prospect of long-term jobs, others are worried about safety and cost.
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00:00One view from the streets of Taralgon, a city just a stone's throw from Peter Dutton's
00:09Victorian nuclear future.
00:10Annoyed, frustrated and angry.
00:13We sit on an earthquake fault line, our ground is unstable.
00:19But opinion is divided.
00:20Well I'm excited by it.
00:22News agent Ray Burgess sees good news in new jobs.
00:25This is a great opportunity for our region to get an industry that we can develop from
00:32the beginning and become experts in and bring a level of prosperity back to us that we haven't
00:39seen for a while.
00:40Yeah absolutely.
00:41I think that the actual risk has been well overstated and overblown.
00:45Just as many opportunities for jobs and prosperity in the town with renewables.
00:50Nuclear power is gone, it's not going to suit this country.
00:54And the opposition to it is going to be overwhelming.
00:57The state government's view is crystal clear.
01:00It is unfathomable.
01:01This is just a crazy policy.
01:04It's a half-baked idea.
01:06Nuclear power is outlawed in Victoria.
01:08To build a plant, legislation would need to be repealed.
01:11The state wants 95% of its energy to come from renewable sources within 11 years.
01:17This is about delaying the renewable energy transition.
01:20This is about delaying action on climate.
01:24Now you have a look, these people have got form.
01:26The Coalition's plan presents a tricky path to tread for John Pursuto.
01:31As an alternative government, we have no plans for it.
01:34I can't be any clearer on that, we have no plans for it.
01:37But we acknowledge that a future federal government may initiate that discussion.
01:40I don't think we should be foreclosing that discussion or any aspect of it.
01:45Gippsland Nationals MP Darren Chester is more forthright in his support.
01:50All we can do now is have the conversation with the local community based on facts.
01:53We don't need a scare campaign.
01:55Both sides of politics think they can win this argument.
01:58Labor's position is unequivocal, while John Pursuto's Coalition has left the door ajar,
02:02opening itself up to potential internal division and political sniping.