Richard Di Natale (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the answer given by the Minister representing the Prime Minister (Senator Birmingham) to a question without notice asked by Senator Di Natale relating to climate change.

The Bureau of Meteorology informed the country that the first quarter of the year was the hottest ever on record—an entire degree above the previous record—and 2.2 degrees above the long-term average. Just think about that: 2.2 degrees over the long-term average in the first quarter of this year. It's remarkable stuff. In fact, it's terrifying. It's absolutely terrifying. Our climate system is breaking down. We are confronting a climate emergency, and it will only get more rapid, more chaotic and more disruptive unless we resolve to act and to act now. This is not a time to sit on the fence. This is not a time for platitudes. This is not a time to appease vested interests. This is a time for action. We need a plan based on the science and based on the reality of the climate emergency that is before us right now.

If we're going to have a plan, any serious plan has to acknowledge that the biggest contributor to global warming right now is coal. We can't let coal exports hide in the shadows anymore. It is Australia's biggest contributor to this global challenge and yet neither side of politics want to talk about it. They take their $3 million in donations from the coal industry, and that is the price for their silence. We're not going to let you ignore this. We won't accept your silence anymore.

Last week, we announced our Renew Australia 2030 plan. It shows that a clear, staged transition out of coal exports, as we invest $1.5 billion in building up our hydrogen and clean energy exports industry, is possible. It's not just possible; it returns incredible dividends for the nation. Of course some people will say it can't be done—the coal industry's too wealthy; it's too powerful. That's what they said about the banking industry when we first called for a royal commission into the banking industry—again, a lone voice on that issue. You see, according to our Renew Australia 2030 plan, we can transition the 45,000 people who work in the coal industry into new jobs and new industries, and we can help transition older workers to do the work that's necessary to rehabilitate mine sites. We can do that if we have a plan. And you know what? We would create 170,000 new jobs as a consequence of it.

What happens if we don't have a plan? The world stops buying our coal anyway, and these workers will be out of work with no plan for their future, for their kids' future or for the future of their local communities. It's either a plan right now, with governments recognising that this is a challenge we can't walk away from, or leaving it up to multinational companies to pull the pin at any time and then these people will be without a job and without a future. It's time for us to act. When Glencore caps coal production that sends a very clear signal about the direction of where coal is heading. And, yet, what's Labor and Liberal parties' response? Again, more silence. They didn't say a word.

The reality is that we can make this transition. We have to make this transition not just because our economy is heading in this direction but because if we are to be able to inhabit a planet and our kids are going to have a safe climate then we have no greater challenge before us. Japan has already said they will no longer be focusing on coal to power their economy—they are transitioning rapidly to hydrogen. Let's not forget that when we talk about coal exports the industries are notorious tax dodgers. For $33 billion in income they paid just $300 million in tax last year. That's 0.86 per cent of federal government revenues.

Only a few days ago we saw tens of thousands of Australian kids hitting the streets protesting for their future. What did they want? No Adani coalmine, no new coal or gas and 100 per cent renewable energy by 2030. What was the response from the Labor and Liberal parties? Again, there was more silence. They did not say a word. That silence won't be tolerated any longer. You cannot stay silent anymore. The future of these kids depends on it. We must take action; we must take it now.

Question agreed to.