Australia's fuel emergency plan: start with good vibes, escalate to maybe

SMH · Brittany Busch · Tuesday 24 March 2026

Australia's fuel emergency plan: start with good vibes, escalate to maybe

Australia's liquid fuel emergency response begins with voluntary measures like carpooling before escalating to price caps, but the government won't commit to specific figures, dismissing a seven-year-old hypothetical it never bothered to update.

The national fuel emergency plan begins with carpooling and ends with price caps the minister won't name a number for — a crisis ladder where the first rung is 'ask nicely' and the last is 'we'll think about it.' Seven years to update a hypothetical and they couldn't even change the example. This isn't a plan — it's a pamphlet someone found in a drawer and photocopied.

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