Gabriel Ng (Menzies, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the motion by the member for Griffith. I am proud to be part of a government that is taking real, ambitious action to address climate change. Those in the coalition are imploding about whether or not they believe in human driven climate change, let alone whether or not they want to do anything about it. Nine years of Coalition government—almost a decade of delay and denial. We accept the science, and we're committed to playing our part to address this global challenge and to seize the opportunity to be at the forefront of innovation and the renewable energy transition. Many of the residents of the electorate I'm fortunate to represent, Menzies, care deeply about climate change. They raise it when I'm doorknocking and they raise it when I'm making phone calls. They call my office. They send us emails—young people who are worried about their future; and parents and grandparents who are worried about the future for themselves, their children and their grandchildren. As a parent of young children, I share their concerns.

I've met multiple times with the climate groups that are active in my area—Menzies for Climate, Australian Conservation Foundation Community Eastern Rosellas, and Baby Boomers for Climate Change Action. In the case of Menzies for Climate, they were present throughout the election campaign. They ran a local candidates forum and handed out climate scorecards at every pre-poll. It will surprise no-one that we rated much better than the coalition. I appreciate the constructive and respectful way these groups have always engaged. We don't necessarily agree on everything, but we can agree on the necessity and urgency of climate action. The Albanese Labor government understands this also. That is why we have accepted the advice of the Climate Change Authority and set a 2035 emissions reduction target of 62 to 70 per cent. As required by the Climate Change Act 2022, the government must consider independent expert advice from the authority before setting a target. This ensures our decisions are grounded in science and reflect international best practice.

There will be some who say the target is too high. Again, those in the coalition are in a civil war over whether or not to abandon net zero. The Liberals and Nationals haven't learned anything from the election, haven't moved on from their three years in opposition and haven't moved on from nine years in government, when they had a ridiculous 20 climate policies—none of which were serious about reducing emissions.

There will also be some who say the target is too low. We know there are other bodies that suggest higher targets. Higher targets will always sound good to those who accept we're in a climate crisis. But our targets don't just consider where we need to get to; they consider how we're going to get there. As has been said before, they're ambitious and achievable. The authority has its own internal expertise but also relies on the expertise of bodies like the CSIRO and Treasury. Unlike those on the other side, this government does not ignore experts; we listen and we act.

We have a clear road map regarding how we will not just lower emissions but seize upon the opportunities the global energy transition presents to become a renewable energy superpower. Key to this is our continuing transition to an 82 per cent renewables energy grid by 2030. Since May 2022 we have added over 18 gigawatts of wind and solar to the grid—a 45 per cent increase since we came to government. Along with our climate targets we announced $2 billion for the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to continue driving downward pressure on electricity prices and to help accelerate long-term renewables projects right across our nation.

Lowering transport emissions is another key part of our plan. We've introduced vehicle efficiency standards, provided incentives to increase uptake of electric vehicles and invested in more kerbside-charging facilities. To reach our targets we're committing a further $40 million for charging infrastructure across our suburbs and regions, and we'll invest $1.1 billion to boost Australia's clean energy fuel production. At a local level we're delivering $85 million to develop households and businesses improve energy performance, and we have our Cheaper Home Batteries Program, which has now installed more than 100,000 batteries nationwide. This is significant progress and it's popular with the residents of Menzies. I commend this motion to the chamber.

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