Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said on ABC’s 730 last night that a 25% tax on gas exports would be “bigger and simpler” than Labor’s proposed gas reservation policy. She's right.
Tue 13 Oct 2026 14.15 AEDT
Photo: AAP Image/Sarah Wilson
This week, the Pacific showed world leaders firsthand what climate change looks like. Back home, the Coalition and One Nation saw something else. They saw an opportunity to dog whistle and punch down on our Pacific nations.
The next round of negotiations will take place as a powerful El Niño intensifies those risks. In Papua New Guinea, water sources are already drying up, crops are failing, and food prices are rising. These impacts are arriving while the diplomatic calendar rolls ever forward.
On the ABC’s 730 program last night, Sarah Ferguson asked Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young about the Albanese government’s proposed gas reservation policy:
Now, the legislation on a gas reservation policy is expected this week, requiring companies to reserve some of their gas for the domestic market, will the Greens support that legislation if it comes through this week?
Sarah Hanson-Young said Labor was “walking back and watering down” their gas reservation policy and instead endorsed the “bigger and simper” alternative of a 25% tax on gas exports:
[L]et me say, I think Labor’s barking up the wrong tree here. We need a much bigger and a much simpler plan to tackle the gas industry and deliver for Australians – and that would be a 25% tax on gas exports.
It’s hugely popular, the community wants it, they’re sick of gas companies getting Australians’ gas for free, flogging it off overseas, making massive profits and not even contributing to the national budget. So let’s be bigger and let’s be simpler, and let’s put in place a tax instead.”
By “bigger and simpler”, Senator Hanson-Young presumably referred to the level of impact each policy would have, as well as how much complexity would be involved.
The Albanese government promised to introduce a gas reservation scheme in May 2026, announcing a policy that would force gas exporters to set aside the equivalent of 20% of gas exports for use in Australia.
But they have since “retreated” from that position, with the policy now expected to require “up to” 20% of gas to be set aside; they have also delayed the scheme. How it will work in practice is unclear, and more recent drafts of the plan have been criticised for including “Santos-sized loopholes” that could allow some companies and projects to keep exporting as normal.
At this point, the amount of gas that this policy will reserve is unclear, and its complexity is worryingly reminiscent of the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax, which has failed for decades to raise significant revenue from Australia’s giant gas exports.
On the other hand, a 25% tax on gas exports is far simpler and would have a far bigger impact.
A 25% tax would have already raised over $78 billion if it had been implemented in July 2022 – enough to pay for universal free childcare, or free university and TAFE for all. A gas reservation policy would not raise a single cent. A gas export tax would also incentivise gas exporters to avoid the tax by redirecting gas to the domestic market, lowering prices for Australian households and businesses.
Verdict: True.
What about some of Senator Hanson-Young’s other claims?
Quality research, analysis, explainers and factchecks from experts you can trust.
Australia Institute polling has consistently shown strong support for a flat 25% tax on gas exports; a national poll from April found support from 72% of Australians, including a majority of those voting for Labor, the Liberals, One Nation, the Greens and independents.
Verdict: True.
Gas companies export about 80 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Australia each year, and just over half of this LNG is extracted from areas where Australian governments do not make the gas companies pay for this gas (royalties), thereby giving it away for free.
For a full analysis of this claim, you can read this fact-check by Australia Institute Research Director Rod Campbell.
Verdict: True.
In 2025-26, over $55 billion worth of gas was exported from Australia, with over $300 billion having been exported since the Albanese government took office.
Two illegal wars – Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the US-Israel attacks on Iran – have caused gas prices to skyrocket in the past few years, creating multi-billion dollar windfalls for the big multinational gas companies that dominate Australia’s market.
Meanwhile, these companies pay very limited tax in Australia.
The Petroleum Resources Rent Tax (PRRT) is the Commonwealth’s main tax on gas. While these companies exported $55 billion of Australian gas last year, the PRRT raised just $1.4 billion in revenue.
Santos – which will potentially enjoy significant exemptions from the Albanese government’s proposed gas reservations policy – has not paid company tax in over a decade despite reporting over $50 billion in total income.
Verdict: True.
