STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS

Ms BERRY (Whitlam) (13:56): In a recent speech, the opposition leader said, 'Labor's claim that Australia can be a renewable energy superpower is a utopian fantasy divorced from reality, but Australia can be an energy superpower if we dig and drill.' At a time when we are facing more frequent and intense natural disasters, when our farmers are dealing with harsher droughts and floods, the opposition have no credible alternative policy.

They think we should simply dig and drill. Given the challenges posed by climate change, that is unconscionable and it's also infuriating. It denies the reality of a warming world and ignores the responsibility we hold to act.

Labor is backing the industries and jobs of tomorrow, lowering emissions while strengthening our energy security and taking seriously our responsibility to future generations. My 15-year-old daughter and one of her close friends are in the gallery today. As a mother, a driving motivation is the importance of taking action on climate change.

It's our children's children who will carry the burden of our failure to act. Our country has everything we need to be a world-leading renewable energy superpower. Our government is embracing that opportunity and we're making a difference.

Our government will not fail in our responsibility to take urgent action on the most pressing, moral and practical challenge of our time.