Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

The government has been very clear about why it is in the national interest to act on climate change. Those opposite who were supporting Mr Turnbull will recall there was a time when you were not led by someone quite so reckless, when you also recognised the importance of acting on climate change.

We have been very clear with the Australian people about the need to act on climate change. The Prime Minister has spoken at length about the reasons for the decision to move to a fixed-price system followed by a floating price—that is, an emissions trading scheme. One thing is clear: it is absolutely in the nation's interest to deal with climate change. This is not an issue that is going to go away. This is not an issue that can be chased away simply by the scaremongering of those opposite.

The government understands there are a great many Australians who are concerned about this policy, who are concerned to understand the impact of the Clean Energy Future package on their households and on their families, which is why the government has worked very hard to ensure that that information is provided to the Australian people. This is, no doubt, a difficult reform. It is a reform that requires this parliament to look to the longer term and not just to the short-term politics. What you can always guarantee is that those opposite are led by a man who will never look to the long term, who will only ever look to what he believes is a short-term political advantage. He used to believe that he needed to act on climate change and that supporting an emissions trading scheme was the way forward, until he thought the politics had shifted. (Time expired)