Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Birmingham. Two days of question time in a row and already the Prime Minister has been caught out again today not telling the truth in the parliament. This is very reminiscent of what happened when the Prime Minister went to Glasgow for COP26. On the back of being called out by the French President, Emmanuel Macron, the Prime Minister's word was mud. Business leaders, community leaders, delegates and negotiators all knew they couldn't trust what the Prime Minister would say. After signing the Glasgow pact, which requires Australia to make changes to keep temperature rises below 1.5 degrees, including phasing down coal, the Prime Minister came back to Australia and said he didn't need to change a thing. Is the Prime Minister fibbing to the world, to our children or to himself?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Hanson-Young for that question. Indeed, the Prime Minister did go to Glasgow, and he went to Glasgow armed with the facts of Australia's record on climate change. Australia's record on climate change is one of absolutely delivering what we promise. Indeed, overdelivering on our promises is our record when it comes to climate change. Australia has seen our emissions fall by more than 20 per cent since 2005. They're down 5.3 per cent this year. We beat our Kyoto-era targets by 459 million tonnes.

The Prime Minister was able to travel to Glasgow with Australia's track record of delivery—by the Australian people, by Australian farmers and by Australian businesses. Australians have themselves invested and have seen their government and many businesses invest in achieving the change to reduce emissions. The Prime Minister was able to go to Glasgow with a track record in excess of that of many other nations—nations the Greens sometimes love to laud, whereas Australia is exceeding them in terms of achievement when it comes to reducing emissions. Emissions reduction in our country is faster than Canada, faster than Japan, faster than New Zealand, faster than the United States and faster than the G20 and OECD averages.

That is the track record that we were able to take to Glasgow, the Australian track record. As the Prime Minister promoted, it's the Australian way of reducing those emissions, the Australian way of investing in emissions reduction through technology, through innovation, through backing people to be able to get ahead and, in getting ahead, through reducing those emissions successfully—without destroying jobs or elements of our economy and without undermining our Australian competitiveness. That's the positive story the Prime Minister was able to take to Glasgow. It is one of achievement, overachievement and clear plans for the future. (Time expired)