Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In recent weeks we've seen the Prime Minister desperate to rebadge himself as a climate hero, trying his hardest but being held back by his coalition partner, the Nationals. We've all seen this movie before: every problem is someone else's fault; every crisis is someone else's responsibility. But the truth is that this Prime Minister has been at the centre of a furious scare campaign against any action on climate change or investment in new energy jobs for years. The trouble for the Prime Minister now is that the world has moved on. Mr Morrison is leaving Australia and carbon-intensive regions like Newcastle and the Hunter increasingly isolated and vulnerable on the world stage. If the Prime Minister was serious about climate change and not leaving regions like mine hanging out to dry, he wouldn't have spent the last eight years doing nothing.

Here we are on the eve of the Glasgow climate conference with the Morrison-Joyce government as divided as ever on even the most basic science of climate change. We're in a race to seize the new economic opportunities for regions like Newcastle and the Hunter, but this Prime Minister can't even find the starting line. It's time to step up and show some real leadership, Prime Minister; otherwise, seriously, what is the point of being in government? You might as well step aside and let an Anthony Albanese-led Labor government show the way on real action on climate change and real jobs for our regions. (Time expired)