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

I think there are two quite distinct questions there and I will deal with the first one first. Yes, I am aware of the heatwave in Adelaide. It was something my mother was complaining about when I last spoke to her—how hot and unseasonable it had been. I note Senator Minchin interjected on your question, suggesting that this was not a record and that these temperatures had been observed in 1961. I do not know whether that is true or not. I certainly know it is very hot for November in Adelaide, particularly for this length of time.

As you know, Senator Brown, because you do have an interest in this issue, I have previously said the key issue when one looks at climate is to look at trends rather than the weather over a short period and, if you look at the trends, it is very clear that the weight of scientific evidence demonstrates that the earth has warmed and that since 1950 the warming rate has accelerated to nearly double what it was in the first half of last century. We also know that 13 of the last 14 years have been the warmest on record. We know that the climate scientists at our own CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology have linked the reduction in rainfall in south-eastern Australia with global warming. These are all scientific facts.