Ali France (Dickson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank goodness that speech is over and done with. What a bunch of rubbish was coming from the member for Cook. I believe the Moreton Bay region is the very best place to live in the world. Moreton Bay, just north of Brisbane, is home to native platypus, turtles, frogs, lizards, snakes and many species of birds. We have flying foxes, native eels and a significant koala population, as well as powerful owls, which we know are vulnerable to extinction.

Recently I was talking to students at a school in Lawnton. I looked to my right and up there in the tree was a koala—right outside the classroom. There are very few places in this country where this could happen. Moreton Bay is also home to one of only a handful of urban platypus populations in Australia, and it's found right on the South Pine River. We have wet and dry eucalypt forest, rainforest, creek systems and coastal and wetland ecosystems. Nearly 30 years ago our local council had the foresight to preserve some of our precious Moreton Bay rainforest ecosystems, after local residents petitioned the council to save the land around Eatons Hill from residential development. Kumbartcho Sanctuary is now a wonderful place to discover and appreciate Moreton Bay's rainforest ecosystems. The sanctuary is an important wildlife highway, providing a safe place for wildlife to move from the state forest to the river. This rare pocket of untouched rainforest has six kilometres of walking paths throughout the forest and near the river.

Saving this land is the only reason we have a unique urban platypus population. That is why the Albanese Labor government has committed $1.6 million for new, improved facilities at the sanctuary to ensure that this important land holding is maintained for future generations. I also acknowledge the support of local councillor Cath Tonks in ensuring that the sanctuary is a priority for the council and the Moreton Bay region. At the mill in Petrie, koala populations have grown by 22 per cent annually since 2017. But we all know that overall our koala populations have been severely impacted over time by development and much-needed housing. The message from my community and across the nation at the election was clear: we want laws that protect the environment, our unique habitats—our koalas—while giving certainty to those who invest, build and create jobs.

For far too long, Australia's environmental laws have been broken, outdated, complex, and failing both nature and business. Today we have the opportunity to fix them. The EPBC Act is last century. Those laws were introduced in 1999—more than 25 years ago—and do not reflect modern environmental science or community expectations for nature, protection and sustainability. It is clear that the need for change is urgent.

The Environment Protection Reform Bill 2025 represents the most significant overhaul of environmental law in a generation. It is an opportunity for important change, and I urge the opposition and the Greens to take up that opportunity. You may not get everything you want, but I think we can all agree that the current laws are archaic and do nothing to protect the environment. This bill delivers strong protections, faster approvals and greater accountability through the creation of Australia's first ever independent National Environmental Protection Agency. This bill is about getting the balance right between protecting our environment and delivering fast approvals for good projects, particularly for housing and transport infrastructure, in fast-growing regions like mine.

Moreton Bay is one of Australia's fastest-growing regions. It is expected that in the next 20 years there will be 210,000 new residents. That's almost the size of Hobart. From young families priced out of Brisbane to those who are looking to retire or those coming from the south to a greater weather and lifestyle, outer urban centres like Moreton Bay are and will continue to be the most impacted by growth. It's only fair that we deliver a strong framework that will protect communities like mine from development in the wrong places while encouraging it and making it easier in the right places.

For too long the grey area between federal and state systems has meant confusion, delay and frustration for communities and businesses. The measures in this bill will tackle the underlying cause of delay while also delivering greater protections for nature. Under these reforms we will remove duplication through new agreements between the Commonwealth and states. There will be faster approvals for good projects, particularly in housing, clean energy and regional infrastructure, while ensuring that environmental safeguards are not compromised.

The National Environmental Protection Agency will be an independent environmental watchdog with real teeth. The new laws will introduce national environmental standards—clear, enforceable rules that cannot be ignored or watered down. And they will empower an independent regulator to act when those standards are breached.

Five years ago, the Samuel review, commissioned by the opposition leader, found the current EPBC Act benefited no-one—not business, not the environment. The review gave the then government a framework for these laws and they promptly shelved the recommendations. Those opposite claim that these laws are too rushed, but they have been aware of the scaffolding and the road map for these laws for five long years. They have had five long years to consider these issues raised by Dr Graeme Samuel.

The member for Cook mentioned 'all talk and no action'. Well, the member for Cook should take a look in the mirror. He talks about protecting the environment while, at the same time, his coalition wants to dump net zero and opposes these bills. Everyone in this place has known that we made a commitment at the election to establish a federal environment protection agency and undertake national environmental law reform. Labor is the party for major environment reform but we are also the party for workers, for jobs and for housing. The bills are about getting the balance right—laws that are good for business and good for the environment. We can and we must do both.

From the beautiful Great Barrier Reef to the rare platypus in the South Pine River, our natural environment is too important to risk. These bills will deliver on thousands of jobs in construction, agriculture and tourism and on clean energy projects, our renewable energy transition and a future made in Australia. We cannot afford to wait for another review, another inquiry or another election cycle; our environment and our economy are too important. The time to act is now because every delay not only costs us precious biodiversity but also costs us jobs—jobs that could be created today in the outer suburbs and regions, where economic opportunity must be matched by decisive leadership.

It is possible to grow our economy, build homes and create jobs while protecting the natural wonders that define our national identity. Only the Labor government will deliver this important change. I commend these bills to the House.

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