Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to conclude the debate on my Landholders' Right to Refuse (Coal Seam Gas) Bill 2012. I would like to start by thanking Tony Abbott for the original inspiration of this bill. I may not get the chance to do that in the next 5½ years that I have in this place, hopefully more. He said six months ago that he thought farmers should have the right to say no to coal seam gas, and we thought: 'Great! Finally someone is listening to the concerns of the community. Let's get this bill in and try to get it through the parliament to give landholders the right to say no.' Unfortunately, it was a pretty short-lived approach by Mr Abbott—the next day he changed his mind and said, 'Mining company should respect the rights of farmers.' Well, farmers do not have any. That is why we need this bill to give them some. It has all been downhill from then on with Mr Abbott and the LNP. And I note with great disappointment, but perhaps no surprise, that we do not have any members here of the Nationals, who profess to care about coal seam gas when they are out in the bush but when it comes to putting bums on seats in this place to vote against coal seam gas they are never here.