Michael Danby (Melbourne Ports, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Prime Minister. Can the Prime Minister confirm that the State of the environment report released today shows that 22 of Australia’s 64 internationally recognised RAMSAR wetlands are in serious decline and that this threatens the 80 waterbird species in wetlands in southern Australia? Given the extraordinary effort of your government, Prime Minister, to save one theoretical orange-bellied parrot, what is the government’s plan to save the many real waterbird species threatened by a serious decline of our wetlands?

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am aware that some of the wetlands are threatened—I think it might have something to do with the drought. Forgive me for saying that—that is blaming somebody, is it, animating nature? That is apparently the ‘blame game’, Mr Speaker. Let me also say this to the member for Melbourne Ports—a member on the other side whom I respect a great deal: I don’t think signing the Kyoto protocol is going to do anything to save Australian wetlands. While I was on my feet a few moments ago, answering another question about—

Lindsay Tanner (Melbourne, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What are you going to do?

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Melbourne!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

the report that was referred to by the member for Melbourne Ports, the State of the environment report, I kept referring to $10.5 billion of additional expenditure over the last five years. As I sat down, it had a strange resonance.

Lindsay Tanner (Melbourne, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Smoke and mirrors.

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Melbourne is warned!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It had a very strange resonance. It only came to me courtesy, I have to acknowledge, of one of my colleagues, whose sharpness on this I greatly respect—namely, the member for Casey. That figure, the $10.5 billion, was the budget deficit that this government inherited from the former Labor government.