Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027
Ms SITOU (Reid) (16:35): I have sat through a number of the contributions from those opposite on the matter before us at the moment. Hearing their contributions has been uninspiring because at no time have they recognised the impact that climate change is having on our environment. At no time have they recognised the huge economic and human toll climate change is having on our country and globally.
The only time I think they may have mentioned climate change was to refer to the department itself. It's like they are trying to talk about this debate but refusing to acknowledge the fact that climate change is having a huge impact on our lives economically and socially. I remember how bad the 2019-20 bushfire season in New South Wales was.
It was so bad that the former New South Wales fire and rescue commissioner Greg Mullins came out strongly with a number of retired fire chiefs to say that—if we do not act on climate change, take it seriously, stand up as political leaders and do something to address this problem—the bushfire season will become more intense and more frequent and everyone will be left suffering the consequences.
We have seen that come to bear with the bushfires in California and with the bushfires in parts of Europe. And yet those opposite still refuse to acknowledge the impact that climate change is having on natural disasters—making them more intense and more frequent. My colleague the member for Leichhardt spoke incredibly eloquently about the impact that climate change is having on his community in Far North Queensland—again, something those opposite refuse to acknowledge.
But—even if we were to take them on their concerns about cost, what this all means and particular projects running over time—what did they have that they were proposing? A $600 billion nuclear energy program. I tell you what, the cost blowouts there would have been enormous.
The time taken to build those things would have run into the decades. What a ridiculous policy. They not only came with a ridiculous policy but have also now abandoned net zero in its entirety, such is the stranglehold by the far right of this country.
They're refusing to even attempt to get to net zero. I'm really pleased that we on this side of the House are talking about climate change and the impact it's having on our community. We're committed to net zero, but we've also got the practical steps to help us get there.
Last year, I stood in this chamber and I had the opportunity to speak on a very similar bill because we are taking real, practical action on climate, energy and our environment. We have done so since we were first elected four years ago. Now that I'm standing here again, I'm really proud to talk about the significant environmental law reforms that we have put in place—the most significant in more than a decade—because for too long the system was outdated and ineffective, failing to properly protect nature while also creating uncertainty for businesses trying to do the right thing.
Through reforms to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, we've changed that. We've established a new National Environmental Protection Agency, a strong independent regulator with the powers, resources and transparency needed to properly protect our environment. It is something that has been missing from this country for far too long.
Just as importantly, we've made the system work better. We're cutting duplication between levels of government, improving access to high-quality environmental data and giving businesses clearer guidance and faster decisions. That matters because Australia should not have to choose between protecting nature and building homes, clean energy and the infrastructure that we need.
The last fortnight has demonstrated that the work we are putting in to get more renewable energy into the grid is working. We are now seeing that 50 per cent of our electricity is now coming from renewable energy. That has resulted in prices starting to come down as well as emissions coming down, and what a great achievement that is.