Aug 14, 2026 – 4.00pmIn 2019, during then-prime minister Scott Morrison’s visit to Tuvalu, a low-lying nation on the front lines of climate change-induced sea level rises, his deputy, Michael McCormack, rather indelicately summed up Australia’s general response to the Pacific Islands’ existential concerns.“I ... get a little bit annoyed when we have people in those sorts of countries pointing the finger at Australia and say we should be shutting down all our resources sector,” he said. “They’ll continue to survive because many of their workers come here and pick our fruit.”Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Ryan CroppEnergy and climate reporterRyan Cropp is an energy and climate reporter at The Australian Financial Review based in the Canberra bureau.Nicola SmithCanberra bureau chiefNicola Smith is The Australian Financial Review’s Canberra bureau chief. She was formerly a foreign correspondent covering Asia and the European Union and joined the Financial Review in 2025. Reach Nicola securely on Signal @niccijsmith.03.Fetching latest articles