Ralph Babet (Victoria, United Australia Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I know this is not my first speech. I rise today to speak of the sheer madness of the government's plan to deindustrialise and shut down Australia in pursuit of an unachievable fantasy of net zero emissions, a fantasy handed down by the unelected bureaucrats at the United Nations and the World Economic Forum who care not for the future and prosperity of our nation or our people and who care not for the environment. Net zero at its core is about power of control for a tiny elite, global corporations and foreign powers. The science that CO2 emissions will clause catastrophic climate change is not settled, and there is no true sign of consensus on the matter. Even if one were to accept the currently pushed narrative, Australia counts for approximately one per cent of total global emissions, and a cut of 43 per cent will have practically zero effect on global climate change. When the government says that it is going to reduce CO2 emissions, what it really should be saying is, 'Let's reduce our standard of living, let's close down Australian businesses, let's close down factories, let's stop making things, let's stop using agricultural land and let's cut back on food production.' We need to cut the rubbish and call it what it is.

Meanwhile, the CCP are not reducing any of their CO2 emissions. In fact, they have plans to build 43 more coal-fired power plants. What we will see is a transfer of wealth and of the means of production from Australia over to the CCP. They will be quite happy with the direction that we are heading in. We shut down our country and they benefit. This will not result in any net decrease in CO2 emissions, as they and others will simply increase their emissions and negate any reductions we make. What we need to do is move away from an obsession with CO2 and open up a conversation around pollution. We want to protect our natural world, keep our rainforests from being cut down, keep chemicals out of the estuaries and the sea, cut plastic pollution, and make corporations accountable for industrial waste which they output when they produce goods and services. Yes, we do. So let's move the conversation to that.