Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I understand that we do not have support for this motion. Since the chamber is not interested in understanding the facts on the ground in Japan, I would like to remind the chamber that there are 20 exposed nuclear cores at Fukushima, that a nuclear adviser to the Japanese government has reported that 966 square kilometres around the reactor site—an area 17 times the size of Manhattan—is now probably uninhabitable and that TEPCO have been spraying water onto volcanically hot reactors and fuel cores, so radiation is now emitted in an uncontrolled way in air and steam. These are some of the facts that the government and opposition do not seem willing to face. Perhaps I will put to this chamber future motions that will have a better result. In the meantime, can we reflect on why we do not appear to be interested in having this information on the public record?

Question put:

That the motion (Senator Ludlam's) be agreed to.

The Senate divided. [12:37]

(The PRESIDENT— Senator the Hon. JJ Hogg)

Question negatived.