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

The senator might like to be aware that the issue of climate change related tariffs has also been under consideration within the European Union, and in March this year President Sarkozy in fact floated a proposal for a carbon tax on imports from countries that have a lower environmental standard than France. This issue was also the subject of public discussion following a European environment ministers meeting in July. It really shows that those opposite are prepared to say anything, make any false claim, in order to try and dodge this tough issue of climate change. The reality is that this is a live issue in the negotiations and the international debate. If you kept up with the debate, you would know that. You are not interested in keeping up with the debate because you are only interested in fighting with each other on whether or not you are actually going to have a coherent position on climate change.