Harry Jenkins (Scullin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Earlier this year I was involved in a Commonwealth Parliamentary Association study group on parliamentarians and the environment. We released a final communique entitled Effecting the implementation of environmentally sustainable development. Amongst other things, we said that parliaments should seek to formulate policies and programs that achieve balance between development and environmental concerns and that parliamentarians should be equipped with adequate information to stimulate informed debate on environment and development issues.

Importantly, we said that governments and parliamentarians should be looking at national procurement policies that advance environmentally sound procurement in the public sector. This could be achieved through an exchange of current best practices in member states and beyond. The thing that I wish to highlight today is that we concluded that parliaments and Commonwealth organisations should examine and address their carbon footprint and consider ways of offsetting emissions, including those related to air travel. I hope that, whatever complexion the government has after the next election, it might look at that last point and look at ways in which we can offset the carbon emissions of our travel. I think that would be an important example and give great leadership to the rest of Australia.