Don Farrell (SA, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and Urban Water) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Humphries, if your plan is so good, why haven't you submitted that plan to Treasury? You are critical of this government about our plan. Why are you so afraid to submit your plan to Treasury for testing? I know why Senator Humphries is so reluctant to submit his plan to Treasury. It is because he knows what this government is saying about his plan in respect of carbon is right—that it will increase costs to the ordinary Australian by $1,300 a year, and all of that money will go to the big polluters.

Senator Humphries claims we are trying to rush this through the parliament. That is the core of his allegations. I remind Senator Humphries that he was part of a government led by John Howard that in 2007 went to the election telling the people of Australia—yes; do not look so surprised, Senator Humphries—that they were going to do something about carbon pollution. John Howard was going to do something about it. But of course the Australian people had the wisdom to reject Mr Howard. They elected a Labor government, and for the last three years we have not been talking about anything else other than putting a price on carbon.