Elizabeth Watson-Brown (Ryan, Australian Greens) | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak about the corrosive influence of the gas lobby. It's a very simple proposal: get gas lobbyists out of parliament. Ban them. It's that simple. Our politicians seem to be completely incapable of resisting the relentless lobbying, the spin, the threats, the pressure and the dossiers of talking points handed to them and their staff. It really is simple: politicians shouldn't be meeting with gas lobbyists; they should be meeting with the people who elected them.

The Greens just put forward this simple proposal, and guess what? Labor, the Liberals and One Nation all voted against it. Why? Well, this is also really simple: the current status quo suits them. A lot of MPs and staffers are friends and ex-colleagues of gas lobbyists. Some of them are ex-lobbyists themselves, and some will go on to be lobbyists. It's a revolving door. It's clear that we have a lot of work to do, people—a lot of work. We need them to fear everyday people more than they like their gas lobby mates, so get out there and build the movement for a gas tax. Talk to your friends, your colleagues and your neighbours about it. And, if politicians can't resist the gas lobby's influence, then let's replace them.