John Hogg (Queensland, Deputy-President) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Minchin, the Minister representing the Prime Minister. Can the minister confirm that the Prime Minister failed in his attempt to sideline the Kyoto protocol in his APEC Sydney declaration? Didn’t Chinese President Hu insist on amendments to the declaration that allow the next round of Kyoto to form the mechanism for securing international action post 2012? Didn’t President Hu also make it clear to the Prime Minister that he believes that Kyoto is ‘the most authoritative universal and comprehensive international framework for tackling climate change’? Given the Prime Minister’s failure to sideline Kyoto, will the government finally ratify Kyoto to ensure that Australia has a seat at the table in Bali in December for the discussions on a post-2012 agreement so that our national interests are represented?