Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Hansard source

Let me start by telling Senator Di Natale exactly what the proposal is for cabinet—I don't think so. You know very well, Senator Di Natale, that I am not in any position to talk about matters that are going to come up before cabinet later this afternoon upon which a decision may or may not be made; and I am not even going to confirm whether or not it is even on the agenda for today. As you well know, Senator Di Natale—a good try as the new leader of the Australian Greens, and I have to admire the pluck of the question—I am not going to go there.

In relation to the target we adopt and how that is going to be classified, I am absolutely resigned to the fact that no matter what target we, as a government, put forward, it will not be enough for the Greens because, no matter what we do, the Greens would want to see higher cost of living and even greater job destruction—something which we, as a government, will not entertain.

As a government, what you need to do is get the balance right and that is why we will give all these matters due and careful consideration, keeping in mind that the Australian people overwhelmingly voted against the carbon tax that the Labor Party and the Greens forced through this place and which the Australian people cast a verdict about in September 2013.

Let us not also forget that other methodologies of energy production will lift thousands, indeed millions, of people out of poverty around the world, and we have got to keep that in mind as well. So what the Australian people can be confident about is that the coalition will take a very measured, sensible approach and not the extreme ideological approach of the Australian Greens. (Time expired)