Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Birmingham for his second supplementary question. What he does is really underline the problem the opposition have. From 1 July this government has taken action to address climate change. Senator Birmingham would have liked to engage in that and do the same but he could not find the courage to do it. And all of the absurdities that Mr Abbott mentioned did not come true. You knew they were never going to come true, Mr President, and so did Senator Birmingham. The Californian government on 15 November effectively kicked off its emissions trading scheme. Again the US is acting through its states. That will provide opportunities across the globe in terms of how emissions can be reduced, and it is a far better place to be than what Senator Birmingham wants to suggest.