Christine Milne (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I just rise to indicate that the Greens will be supporting Senator Xenophon’s amendments here to try to get support for emerging technologies. I have heard some excuses in my time, but the fact of the matter is that the coalition were desperately concerned about emerging technologies until they got the deal with the government to favour the exemptions to the big polluters—to favour coal gas, to favour everything they wanted—and then they dropped their interest in emerging technologies and have now said that they will bring it on as a private member’s bill in the lower house, knowing full well that they do not have the numbers there.

It is clear, again, that the reason this was not dealt with in June was that the coalition were more concerned about getting the exemptions for the aluminium industry et cetera than they were about putting the renewable energy target through. So what we have just heard is a whole lot of excuses. But people who want to see those emerging technologies brought on are going to know that the deal between the government and the coalition means that there will be no incentive whatsoever in this legislation to bring on solar thermal, geothermal and wave technologies. Let us get that on the record and stop this doublespeak that is going on.