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

I do not know if you were elected at the last election, Senator Nash, but if you were there was a policy there with it marked on the front of it that you were committed to an emissions trading scheme. Was this another non-core promise? Just a fake promise to get you through the election, because the Australian people cared about climate change and were prepared to vote for action on climate change? Is that what it was: a fake policy just to get you through the election?

The proposition that we should not act because we are a small nation in terms of emissions is an argument against any action. That argument would have applied to John Howard’s scheme. The fact is that you have no answer to that, because all of the debate from that side has been a cover for one proposition: those in the coalition who have extreme views, whether it is on Work Choices or on climate change, will not stop until they do all they can to stop action on climate change. That is the only proposition. Maybe Senator Nash is a bit sensitive on this issue, but it is the truth. You went to the Australian people with this policy.