The Queensland government has launched a sneak attack on the living standards of all Australians on the eve of Christmas by effectively banning new oil and gas exploration and production from the Lake Eyre Basin according to the Australian Institute for Progress.

Institute Executive Director Graham Young said that the Lake Eyre Basin covers around 50% of the state, including most of the areas prospective for oil and gas, so this is a body blow to the industry and all who depend on it.

“The government has dropped this at a time when they know it will get little attention from the public because they want to hide their surrender to the environmental lobby.

“Premier Miles is also hypocritical because just days ago he acknowledged the importance of gas as a transition fuel.

“Until, and if, pumped hydro is put in place in Queensland, we will need gas-fired power stations as the only technology that can sustainably back-up the grid.

“Yet with a gas shortage looming he has made it impossible to go looking for more in the areas where it is most likely to exist.”

Mr Young urged Queenslanders to look around them this Christmas and see how many items would not exist without oil and gas.

“If you’re lucky enough to find a Tesla sitting under your Christmas tree, just check out the tyres it sits on and realise they are a petroleum by-product, and all the plastics externally and internally are manufactured from gas.

“Without gas you wouldn’t have a windscreen because you can’t make glass without the heat it produces.

“Let’s hope you can still afford a hearty lunch, but without fertilisers, another gas product, you won’t be able to in future.”

Mr Young said that without gas coal-fired power stations will need to be around longer so as to avoid blackouts.

“If you want to reduce CO2 emissions, and need a fossil fuel, then you would have to choose gas over coal or oil any day for its drastically lower emissions.”

Mr Young said it was ironic this policy was announced at a time when the world’s oil security was being put at risk by terrorist actions in the Red Sea’

“Our national security is at risk because our oil reserves are so low, we have so little domestic refining capacity, and so little domestic supply, yet here we have a state premier putting that security at even greater risk at a time when the risk has never been more apparent.

“It’s a bah humbug of a decision.”