Barnaby Joyce (Queensland, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

We have implored Senator Fielding to reconsider his amendment. A royal commission is something that is protracted in the extreme. Although we concur completely with the remarks of Senator Abetz that greater communication is absolutely an issue here, we do not believe that the sentiment of the Senate or of the Australian public warrants a royal commission into climate change. We have premised our debate on whether the economics of this emissions trading scheme are applicable. We have premised our debate on the fact that the economics of this scheme are abhorrent and are of no benefit to the Australian people. We have premised our debate on the fact that the economics of the emissions trading scheme are no more than a massive new tax and that, as a massive new tax, it will do nothing but make people poorer or broke. We say to the Australian people: if you do not understand this massive new tax, do not vote for it. This massive tax will do nothing to help working families. It will put working families out of work. It will make pensioners poorer. It will put farming families out of work. But we do not believe that a royal commission is required to discuss the pros and cons of global warming. That is a debate for the scientific community at the appropriate venue and not in a royal commission. The Productivity Commission—