Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to place Labor's voting position on the record. I do want to observe that, in the debate that occurred just before this one, I recalled the remarks of Mr Sharma in the other place, who warned about the problems that arise when people insist on turning sensible debate about climate change into a silly culture war. The contribution from Senator Seselja just now, rambling on about goat's cheese, is exactly a classic in the genre. This is unnecessary and unhelpful.

The government's response on electric vehicles over time is incredibly disappointing. It's why Labor has announced its own electric car discount, to make electric cars cheaper so that more families can afford them and to reduce emissions. But, as we've made clear over the course of the debate, we do think that these bills are vital. We note that they are well overdue. We don't think holding them hostage to a separate set of ideas as proposed by the Greens is a sensible way to proceed. It's on those grounds that we won't be supporting the amendment before us.