Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

This bill is not just one broken promise from the Labor Party; it is two broken promises from the Labor Party. Firstly, they promised to strengthen our environmental laws, and they are coming in here and weakening our environmental laws. Secondly, the government promised to listen to First Nations people in this country, and they are now reducing the capacity of First Nations people to have a say over massive gas developments that impact on their sea country. I guess the lessons for First Nations people in Australia is that they should donate as much money to the Labor Party as Woodside and Santos have, if, in fact, they want to be heard.

If we ever needed a smoking gun to show just how much the gas cartel had completely purchased the Australian Labor Party, here it is. It lays bare the hold that the gas cartel has on this parliament. It is a stark reminder of who actually calls the shots in here, and that, of course, is the giant climate-destroying gas corporations. And who has marched in here, obsequiously serving the gas cartel? That's right; it's the Australian Labor Party. Who are the lickspittles and the lackeys and the toadies to the giant climate-destroying gas corporations? That's right; it's the Australian Labor Party—the absolute vassals to the psychopaths running the gas corporations in this place; the bootlickers to the giant gas corporations.

The Australian Labor Party is showing today that it is prepared to serve the corporate interests of the gas cartel over and above the future wellbeing of every person and every species on this beautiful planet that we all inhabit. We should be surprised, but, unfortunately, we are not surprised, because, time after time after time, in here marches the Australian Labor Party to do the bidding of the big corporations. Whether it's Coles and Woolworths, whether it's Woodside and Santos, whether it's big banks, whether it's big gaming, this is a party that has sold itself lock, stock and smoking barrel to the big corporations of this country. And who's missing out? It's the people who are getting price-gouged at the checkouts in Coles and Woolworths. Who's missing out? It's people whose lives are being destroyed by climate change because this government is too weak, craven and cowardly to stand up to the giant gas corporations. Shame, shame, shame on the Labor Party!