Matt Thistlethwaite (Kingsford Smith, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for the Republic) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Our kids future is too important to leave in the hands of the National Party, but that's exactly what the Prime Minister has done. He has left Australia's climate change policy in the hands of the Nationals. After eight long years, Australia still doesn't have a policy to reduce emissions and tackle climate change. Eight long years! They built the Sydney Harbour Bridge in quicker time than it has taken this government to come up with a policy on climate change. For eight years the climate sceptics in this government have held the country and our kids' future to ransom, scuttling any attempt to come up with a credible policy. We've had the National Energy Guarantee, Direct Action, the big stick and 'technology, not taxes': they're all slogans! There's nothing behind them; there's no actual policy to reduce emissions.

Enough is enough! Australians have had enough; they're sick and tired of the government fighting, bickering and arguing over whether or not climate change is real. The people of Australia, and particularly our children, deserve better. They deserve a government that's going to take climate change seriously. The Prime Minister has to stop being a climate change wimp. He has to show some leadership and stand up to the National Party. He has to adopt a policy of net zero emissions and plan a transition where we reduce emissions, support renewables, support electric vehicles, rewire our grid to cater for renewables, invest in batteries, create jobs and encourage investment in Australia. That is the future and it's time for the government to show some leadership on climate change.