Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Brandis for making a contribution, because I remember the days when he used to believe that climate change was a problem for this country. I remember the days when the Liberal Party was serious about tackling climate change and when he supported that position. But unfortunately that is no longer the case.

It is the case that the Prime Minister has been very upfront with the Australian public about these issues—very upfront. She has been in the media the last few days answering questions, responding to the issues posed by the opposition, and she has made the continuity of Labor’s position seeking to address this issue very clear. You might recall that three times in the last term we brought legislation into this parliament and three times those opposite, with a combination of Independents and Greens, rejected that legislation. The consistency of this government’s approach is on the record. We have consistently attempted to make a major reform to our economy to reduce carbon pollution.