Patrick Gorman (Perth, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Most people are raised to know that, when you make a mistake, you say sorry, but today is 10 years of the Greens political party refusing to say sorry for giving us a decade of inaction on climate change, helped by those in the Liberal Party and helped by those in the National Party—a coalition of inaction. It's an absolute disgrace.

Ten years ago today this building was the scene of a political crime. I've had so many lectures from the Greens political party about what Labor should be doing. They move motions. They do all of the tactical stuff. When it comes to actual legislation that would have done something about climate change, what did they do? They voted with the Liberal Party. They acted in their political self-interest, because they know that they don't actually want action on climate change. They don't want to do anything about it; they just want to be able to throw bombs at others. Then they start saying the most outrageous things. The Greens accused those on the Labor side of arson. It's just unbelievable that they would go that low in the gutter. What's next? Necrophilia? Who knows? It was disgraceful of the Greens political party.

They failed to stop 218 million tonnes of carbon emissions. They have done nothing to help us meet the Sustainable Development Goals. They are more Lex Luthor than Captain Planet. They should apologise to the Australian people and they should start moving in the course of action on climate change. (Time expired)