Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Hansard source

The international community is moving to act on climate change, and the Albanese government is committed to working with our partners in our region, and in particular in the Pacific, to address climate change through the Paris framework. Australia under the Albanese government has a serious plan, an actual plan, to transform our economy and meet our commitments. On coming to government, we lifted our emissions target by more than half from 26 per cent to 43 per cent by 2030, and, alongside our net zero commitment, we made those targets law. We made them law, because that is what will provide businesses and the community with certainty.

As uncomfortable as it is for those opposite, business welcomes this approach. When we passed the Climate Change Act, the Business Council of Australia said:

Prime Minister Albanese and Minister Bowen have bought Australia a step closer to ending the climate laws that have put a handbrake on progress and become a serious economic barrier.

We've acted on those targets with policies like the safeguard mechanism, our Reliable Renewables plan that is backed in by the Capacity Investment Scheme, new vehicle efficiency standards, Hydrogen Headstart and Future Made in Australia. The November report from the Climate Change Authority, which didn't yet reflect all of those initiatives, showed that 43 per cent by 2030 is within reach. We are now on track for at least 42 per cent emissions reductions by 2030. We take this path because we know that the world's path to net zero is an unprecedented economic opportunity for our country. (Time expired)