Anne McEwen (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

As I was saying, Australians are doing the right thing in terms of climate change. But, unfortunately, simply doing things in the household is not going to be enough. Recycling, minimising water usage and reducing the amount of energy we use in our homes is not enough. Australian businesses need to join the party. More importantly, they want to. We saw that this week in the report about sustainability and industry that was released by the Chief Executive of the Ai Group, Heather Ridout. It is not often I get to quote Heather Ridout in a speech, but she made a statement that I agree with, for once. She said:

Companies clearly need more information on how they can improve sustainable practices, they need a better understanding of an emissions trading scheme, and they need better incentives, particularly for small to medium firms.

Business is crying out for leadership from a strong government committed to slowing climate change, not one full of climate change sceptics like the current government. The current government, as we know, has refused to ratify the United Nations agreement negotiated in Kyoto. Until recently, the Prime Minister was a climate change denier. It has only been recently, in the face of poor polls, that his scepticism has miraculously subsided and he has become an almost convert.

Government has refused to increase the mandatory renewable energy targets. Instead, we see this government’s obsession with nuclear power increase, and the government’s solution to the energy needs which are going to underpin manufacturing industry is to build nuclear reactors in Australia and to build the accompanying nuclear waste facilities that must go with them. It is a very impoverished view of what needs to be done to ensure that manufacturing industry in Australia is vibrant and growing and is sustainable into the future.

Debate interrupted.