Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Environment and Water) Share this | Hansard source

What's changed is that there is a government that is committed to action on climate change. In fact, sources close to UNESCO said to Le Monde that between the previous government and this government it's a bit like night and day. Of course, they're talking about our increased investment in the reef—doubling funding for reef science, investing more in getting Indigenous rangers out there dealing with crown-of-thorns starfish and marine science, cancelling damaging dam projects that were going to affect water quality, and an additional $150 million for gully stabilisation, for making sure that we're not seeing masses of mud flowing out onto the reef. We're improving water quality, working with farmers—banana farmers, pastoralists, sugarcane farmers—to reduce nutrient load going onto the reef, and dealing with overfishing. In fact, we're phasing out gillnet fishing on the reef, something that's been talked about for decades but never done by those opposite.

I'm so proud of the fact that the international community is recognising the efforts of the Albanese Labor government to tackle climate change, to do our share. (Time expired)

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