Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Hansard source

As I was saying, instead of decreasing the influence of the climate change sceptics, the new Leader of the Opposition has promoted them. Yesterday, he appointed the member for Goldstein to a new role determining the opposition’s policy on emissions trading, which is central to the response to climate change. This is the same member for Goldstein who, according to the Financial Review Magazine, thinks that climate change is lies, lies and damned statistics. This is the same member for Goldstein who thinks that climate change is just a leftie fad—that, after the fall of communism, it has become a cause celebre for the left. This is the same member for Goldstein who says of action to reduce carbon pollution:

It bothers me that the world could be spending serious resources on what we think might be causing it.

If there were any doubt that the climate change sceptics in the opposition are now in charge of climate change policy for the opposition, all you need to do is look in this chamber at who is representing the member for Goldstein—it is the notorious climate change sceptic Senator Minchin, who we know does not believe that climate change is real.

The opposition leader wants to be taken seriously on climate change. If he is going to be up to the challenge of tackling climate change, he is going to have to do better when it comes to tackling the climate change sceptics, who ensured that the previous government did nothing on this key issue in all their years of government and ensured that this country did nothing for 12 years. They are the same people who ensured that the Howard government failed the task and failed in the responsibility of preparing this country for its future challenges. Senator Minchin, the member for Goldstein—these people who believe that climate change— (Time expired)