Net zero needs nuclear power, Prime Minister

On climate change, those most concerned were Labor (96%) and Greens (98%). The least concerned were the nationalists (7%). Liberals were in-between, with 24% of supporters concerned.

Whether advertent or not, Morrison has potentially found a way to thread a path which shifts debate more towards defence, and gives him a climate change issue that can help to assemble a winning coalition without getting bogged down in nit-picking and rancour.

The next election will come down to preferences from minor parties. With over 80% of Greens preferences going Labor, they are predictable. What is much more volatile is the distribution of non-Greens minor party preferences.

An issue that excites the nationalists, but that can also maintain a climate change narrative, has vote-winning potential.

The defection of prominent Liberals, like Campbell Newman, to the nationalists suggests deep dissatisfaction with Morrison's government, and a historically high minor party vote, magnifying Morrison's problem.

This also explains why Albanese has been mildly supportive of the submarine decision. He wants to pick his fight somewhere else.

If this leads to Labor going soft on opposition to nuclear power generation this is also to the good. It has always been bizarre that Australia has 30% of the world's resources of uranium, and is the third-largest exporter of the mineral, but uses none of it to generate electricity.

To electrify our economy we need at least 250 to 300 per cent more electricity generation than we have at the moment. The thought that this can be produced by renewables with their low intrinsic efficiencies, huge storage requirements, and demands for a dramatically expanded network, in time for 2050 and at a reasonable cost, is fanciful.

Indeed Britain has just commissioned Rolls-Royce to build a fleet of 16 mini-reactors because of problems with wind and solar, and sky-high gas prices.

We can buy the nuclear subs from either the US or the UK. If we take the UK option, perhaps they could come with a side serving of RR-branded small modular reactors.