Christine Milne (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

Contrary to what Senator Abetz has just said, this is a new Senate, with a number of new senators who have not had the opportunity to go through a committee stage of this legislation. Let me say that the Palmer United Party has put up an amendment that has just been circulated. Nobody has had a chance to actually question anything about that amendment. Labor have got amendments and the Greens have got amendments. We are working to try to save the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, ARENA. This is an attempt to stop the Senate saving ARENA's finance. That is what this is about. As much as anything else, it is about tearing down the capacity of the Senate to actually have a committee stage of this legislation. We have to have a committee stage. This is probably the most important package of bills for Australia's future and we cannot allow this parliament to ram it through because the Prime Minister wants to axe the tax. That is ridiculous. (Time expired)