Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I can, hand on heart, say I don't recall anyone ever raising the EPBC Act with me in any international forum. If I've misled you, I will come back to the chamber and correct it. I don't believe there's been any discussion about the EPBC legislation that Minister Watt is putting forward. Obviously people do have views, and I would say this, very simply: we want stronger protections for the environment and we want faster decisions for business. It's entirely up to the Greens whether you choose a path that ensures that you are not relevant to a discussion about where the environmental laws will be in decades to come or whether you choose a path where you are. That relevance does depend on whether you are prepared to engage with the government of the day or whether you continue to stake out a position that you know will lead to legislation being passed with the support of the coalition.