John Hogg (Queensland, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Abetz, the Minister representing the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. I refer the minister to a Citigroup review on the effect of climate change that found that Australia’s big mining companies BHP and Rio Tinto were well prepared for the impact of climate change on their business. Given that BHP and Rio Tinto are prepared to recognise and plan for the impact of climate change on their business, why is the government not prepared to recognise and plan for the impact of climate change on Australia’s farmers? Don’t the severe reductions in ABARE crop forecasts show that climate change has the potential to cost the farm sector and our economy billions of dollars in lost earnings? How much longer does the agriculture sector have to wait for the government to put in place measures to help it adapt to climate change?

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We as a government are well known for our position in taking Australia forward and indeed taking the world community forward in relation to climate change. We are concerned to engage all sectors of our economy—

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Industry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Aren’t you a sceptic?

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Senator Carr, I have reminded you a number of times to cease interjecting.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. You would think that if the Labor Party were genuinely interested in climate change they would at least allow me to get 30 seconds into the answer before they get the bovver boys like Senator Carr and others to interject. We as a government have taken a considered stance that is being accepted around the world as being the appropriate position, and that is to take the actions—

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Around the world!

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The arrogant Leader of the Opposition in the Senate interjects again and says, ‘Around the world.’ Yes—around the world, as was shown at the APEC conference, where we were able to get the United States, China, Russia and some of the other big emitters to sit down together and work out how we can move forward together. Here we are achieving on a grand scale—Australia is punching well above its weight—and the reason is that we have credibility generally, right around the world, because of our Prime Minister and our foreign minister and because on this issue we have credibility. A lot of countries accept that we have credibility, despite the fact we have not signed up to Kyoto, because we have taken a rigorous and robust approach in relation to this.

In relation to the agricultural sector, it needs to be remembered that Australia, to a large extent, is one of the breadbaskets of the world. We have a responsibility and a duty not only to our farming communities but also to those countries that we supply to try to provide food as cheaply as possible. Currently, the agricultural sector is going through devastating consequences as a result of a drought the proportions of which, chances are, we have not seen since the greater Federation drought of 1901. In all those circumstances we have been saying that we will work with the agricultural community to deal with these issues but in a way that they can adapt and ensure their ongoing viability. Of course, that is the thing that has underscored our total approach on this issue, which is to make sure that every industry sector can cope, can deal with the challenges, without sending them broke. That is the big difference between the Howard government’s approach and the Rudd approach.

John Hogg (Queensland, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Wasn’t the Prime Minister’s decision to specifically exclude the agriculture sector from his emissions task group evidence that this government has no regard for the role of agriculture in potential solutions to climate change? Doesn’t the government’s failure to help our critical agriculture industries adapt to climate change show once again that the government is full of climate change sceptics, like the minister, who are not serious about tackling climate change?

Honourable Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Above the cacophony, I think I did hear the questions—and there were two of them. I can answer them for the honourable senator in the following manner. The answer to the first question is no. The answer to the second question is no.

Nick Minchin (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance and Administration) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.