Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm so glad we got to this one today. I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes:

  (i) that Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the European Union signed an Oceans Plastics Charter at the recent 2018 G7 summit,

  (ii) that the United Kingdom, Vanuatu, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Ghana have joined the Commonwealth Clean Oceans Alliance, an agreement between member states to tackle plastic pollution collectively,

  (iii) the passage of UN Environment Assembly Resolution to Tackle Plastic Waste & Marine Litter in the December 2017 Nairobi meeting,

  (iv) that the United Kingdom Government and the European Union are developing comprehensive strategies to reduce plastic pollution, including a phase-out of single-use plastics,

  (v) that films such as David Attenborough's Blue Planet 2 and the ABC television series The War on Waste have drawn public attention to the impact of marine plastics, and

  (vi) that the Australian Threat Abatement Plan for Marine Debris expired in 2014, and the Government is yet to enact a new Plan to replace it; and

(b) calls upon the government to:

  (i) urgently enact a new Threat Abatement Plan for Marine Debris, and

  (ii) start showing international leadership by joining, supporting and advancing global and multi-lateral agreements to end plastic pollution in our oceans.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Australian government takes the problem of plastic waste and its impacts on the environment very seriously and works with other governments to address ocean pollution. Most recently the government has worked with the states and territories to voluntarily phase out the use of microbeads in cosmetic and personal care products, with 94 per cent of these products now microbead free.

Question agreed to.