Australia’s Nuclear Future: Plan B for our energy needs

Australia needs to remove the prohibition on nuclear energy before it is too late to catch up

Below are the slides and other details from my presentation entitled 'Australia’s Nuclear Future: Plan B for our energy needs', to the Forrest Men's Shed at the Wesley Uniting Church Forrest, Canberra.

Through his research, Michael has developed a model to explain networked infrastructure deployment and how technological legacies influence the policy choices available in the future. Based on this model, he will address the challenges to nuclear energy in Australia originating with the antinuclear narrative and the role of the McClelland Royal Commission into British Nuclear Testing in reinforcing this narrative. Michael will then discuss the policy legacies created by the Howard Government’s prohibition of nuclear in 1998, and the policy and infrastructure legacies created by Energy Minister Chris Bowen. He will explain the necessity of a government-controlled nuclear reactor fleet, what that might look like, and the importance of a civilian nuclear industry to support AUKUS. Michael will conclude with a discussion of the absence of a "Plan B" for Australia's energy needs, and the results of renewables-only strategies internationally and what these might mean for Australia’s energy future.

The slides are available below:

Uniparty Hate Crime Bill won’t stop hate crime

This type of activity is already illegal, we need more action, not words.

The voting behaviour of senators on February 6 was bizarre to say the least. Labor’s Criminal Code Amendment (Hate Crimes) Bill 2025 passed both houses in what can only be described as a whirlwind. The passing of the bill has left conservatives scratching their heads as a mixed bag of conservative senators voted ‘no’, one abstained, and another well-regarded conservative upset his fans by voting ‘yes’.

Writing in the Morning Double Shot newsletter, Terry Barnes had this to say:

Michael de Percy is adamant that the Labor-Coalition hate crimes bill, just passed, will do nothing to stop the hate crimes that it purports to target.

My latest in The Spectator Australia, Uniparty Hate Crime Bill won’t stop hate crime.

"Many conservatives see this bill as the ultimate Uniparty cop-out that means nothing and does nothing other than potentially take away our freedoms." - Michael de Percy (@FlaneurPolitiq)https://t.co/Jqos6b4hck

— The Spectator Australia (@SpectatorOz) February 10, 2025

Will Trump inspire Dutton to undo the Uniparty?

Donald Trump is draining the swamp! [Epoch Times CC BY-NC 2.0]

There is so much hot air blowing around at the moment. Almost every leftie on social media is having a meltdown. Never mind that their partisan nonsense caused the swamp to need draining in the first place. Many conservative voters are not convinced that Mr Dutton will turn the Liberals around in the way Donald Trump reformed the Republicans. But will the Don’s decisive action be enough to inspire Mr Dutton to undo the Uniparty?

Writing in the Morning Double Shot newsletter, Terry Barnes said:

Michael de Percy, who sees an opportunity to disrupt the ‘Uniparty’ Tweedledee and Tweedledum political settlement of the ALP and the Coalition. Trump certainly has energised the conservative base, but how sold are many not rusted-on Australian voters on the Trump agenda, or are there bits of it embraced enthusiastically and others in the lead balloon category? Peter Dutton’s cautious cherry-picking of what’s on offer from the Trumpian menu, notably on patriotism, the flag, and rightly rejecting multi-genderism and its fallout for women, speaks practical political judgment, as in a parliamentary system evolution tends to be more successful than revolution. Encourage Dutton for starting to go in the right direction, not disparage him for not going far enough.

Writing in the Unfiltered newsletter, Alexandra Marshall had this to say:

Christian and Jewish groups, in particular, are very worried about clashes with the LGBTQ+ movement. Why, when Dutton is desperately trying to rebuild the blue ribbon brand, is his party committed to anti-liberty laws? As Michael de Percy writes, many are hoping that Donald Trump will inspire Peter Dutton to undo the idea of a ‘uniparty’. ‘If the Opposition acts in any way like Labor, especially on no-brainers like social media bans or anything that impacts freedom of speech or religion or that tries to reinvent nature, they confirm the Uniparty theory.’

My latest in The Spectator Australia, Will Trump inspire Dutton to undo the Uniparty?

"Australia is ready for a leader who has the strength and the courage to drain the swamp. All we want is a government that stands for us and not the Uniparty." - @FlaneurPolitiq https://t.co/JvSXcP2Ztg

— The Spectator Australia (@SpectatorOz) February 8, 2025