Louise Miller-Frost
Boothby · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“This has been a big week in parliament and a big week for delivery by the Albanese Labor government. The Solar Saver program started—three hours of power in the middle of the day. We expanded paid parental leave to a full six months. We opened the National Environmental Protection Agency and we opened a new veteran wellbeing agency.”
“More recently, we announced that we will strengthen consumer protections for those on Support at Home by empowering the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission to be able to order refunds for overcharged services and to be able to report publicly on investigations and enforcement actions; by producing each quarter a national summary of Su…”
“The demographics are not in our favour. Next year, 90,000 additional Australians will turn 80; 15 years ago that number was 15,000. This has an impact on the service offerings we need to provide, specifically in aged care and health.”
“While we listen to those opposite try to throw blame around and cynically, desperately, try to claw back some votes, we should turn to an independent arbiter as to why the aged-care system is where it is right now.”
“The government's plan to expand and improve aged-care services in Australia will also mean an expansion of end-of-life pathway, providing dignified care to older Australians in their final months.”
“We are confronted with this reality and we are confronting the reality with a plan—a plan that will ensure that every older Australian can get affordable and timely access to the quality care they need and deserve, and a plan that will improve and expand the system to make it fit for purpose and sustainable well into the foreseeable futur…”
The complete record
Every one of 506 lines we hold for Louise Miller-Frost, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 7 of 11.
“I've run primary mental health services across South Australia, including in rural and remote areas. I've run primary health services for SA Health in the city, as well as homelessness services for Catherine House and Vinnies. And I've witnessed firsthand the emotional and financial toll that a mental illness can take on a person's life if the mental illness is left unchecked, untreated. The effects of mental ill health are felt far beyond the individual sufferer. It can have devastating impacts for the family and the community. The factors known to have a causative link to mental ill health are many and various, including unemployment, homelessness, financial insecurity, family and domestic violence, and significant life events.”
“Australia is in the midst of a mental health crisis, and the statistics are stark. One in two Australian adults will suffer from a mental illness at some point in their lives. Three thousand Australians will take their own lives each year as a result of mental ill health. In South Australia, one in five people experience a mental illness every year, and 43 per cent of South Australians will experience a mental illness in their lifetime. While we wouldn't think twice about seeking professional care for a physical injury, too often we treat mental illness with an unseriousness we wouldn't treat the common cold with. That's why Mental Health Month is so important in bringing awareness to an issue which has, for decades, been under prioritised when it comes to government support. I've worked in and around the mental health space all my life.”
“Chances are, there are people in this chamber, in our offices, in our families and in our homes who know the black dog or other forms of mental illness. The black dog can be kept at bay. Mental illness can be treated. As with all illness, often early intervention leads to a better outcome. That's why the Albanese Labor government's historic investment in the national infrastructure of mental health care is so vital. It will ensure that all Australians, no matter their age, the severity of their condition or their financial circumstances, can get the mental health support they need, wherever they need it and whenever they need it. I commend the motion to the House.”
“We're rebuilding and expanding the inpatient mental health service at the Margaret Tobin mental health centre at Flinders, which, when completed, will be able to accommodate 48 mental health beds, including 12 brand new beds in the psychiatric intensive care unit. The metaphor of the black dog is often used to describe the experience of depression. While for many of us a dog is our loyal companion, the black dog of depression refers to a dark shadow that accompanies you morning and night. It interrupts your sleep. It craves your attention during the quieter hours of the day and barks even more loudly when your attention has strayed. It's the shadow on your joy, the shadow on every activity. It undermines your focus, saps your energy. Chances are, we all know somebody who is being stalked by their own black dog.”
“In Marion, in my electorate of Boothby, we have an excellent headspace service that is much used. Next month we will welcome a Medicare Mental Health Kids Hub in the Marion GP Plus Health Care Centre. A Medicare Mental Health Centre will also be established in this area. Work on a perinatal mental health centre is currently underway in Elizabeth in northern Adelaide, and we can expect at least one more perinatal mental health centre in Adelaide as part of Labor's 2025 election commitment. A new statewide eating disorder service will be built at the Repat Health Precinct in Daw Park, in the very heart of Boothby, providing inpatient and outpatient treatment for people living with an eating disorder.”
“The numbers speak for themselves: 91 Medicare Mental Health Centres offering a free walk-in service delivered by a multidisciplinary team; 20 perinatal mental health centres for new and expectant parents; 17 Medicare Mental Health Kids Hubs providing early intervention support for children under the age of 12 and their families; 203 headspace services for young Australians between the ages of 12 and 25; 20 youth specialist centres for young Australians with complex needs; support for an expected 150,000 people with mild to moderate mental illness each year, with a Medicare mental health check-in, a free non-referral service over the phone and online, led by trained mental health professionals; and funding for more than 4,000 psychology scholarships, internships and training places.”
“That's why Mental Health Month, which we marked in October, and Perinatal Mental Health Week, which we mark this week, are so important in bringing awareness to this health crisis. It is a crisis that has long been underprioritised, underfunded and underappreciated when it comes to government support. The Albanese Labor government is changing all that, with an unprecedented $1.1 billion in investment in expanding and enhancing Medicare mental health services across the community and across the country, providing tailored and targeted support for all Australians and their mental health needs that is, crucially, accessible and affordable. The Albanese Labor government understands that mental health care is a right, not a privilege.”
“Australia's in the midst of a mental health crisis, and I'm not going to play partisan politics on such a serious issue. The statistics are stark. One in five Australians between the ages of 16 and 85 experiences a mental illness every year. One in two Australians will experience a mental illness at some point in their lives. Unfortunately, South Australia is no exception. One in five South Australians experiences a mental illness every year, and 43 per cent of South Australians will experience a mental illness at some point in their lives. Chances are that you know somebody with a mental illness. It may be you. Yet, Australians are more likely to seek professional help for a common cold than we are for a mental illness.”
“This bill will guarantee Australians will have access to Australian stories now and into the future. It will ensure that, no matter what remote you're holding, Australian stories will be at your fingertips. Australians will see themselves and know each other, and the world will meet us. I commend the bill to the House.”
“Streaming services covered by the new requirements will report to ACMA, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, which will administer the Australian screen content requirement. The Australian government committed to ensuring Australians have access to local stories wherever they choose to watch their screen content, and this bill fulfils that commitment. Since their introduction in Australia, streaming services have created some extraordinary shows. In the last few years, many of them have produced great Australian content. A minority, however, are yet to produce any. This legislation is not a criticism of the streaming businesses in Australia; it's an endorsement of Australian stories, a celebration of Australian creatives and a show of respect for the Australian audience.”
“The requirement also includes a voluntary option for streaming services to acquit their requirements based on a calculation of 7½ per cent of their Australian revenue. Streaming services can acquit their obligation over a three-year period. This principle was put strongly to the government by the streaming services during the extensive consultation and reflects the lumpy nature of investment cycles in high-quality programs. There will also be a statutory review conducted four years after the commencement to make sure the requirement is operating effectively. This obligation will give vital support to our domestic screen sector and arts workers by ensuring quality local stories. The proposed requirement we are debating today is consistent with Australia's international trade obligations.”
“It will mandate that streaming services with more than one million Australian subscribers invest at least 10 per cent of their total program expenditure for Australia on eligible program formats in Australia and on new Australian programs. Eligible program formats are drama, children's programs, documentary, arts and educational programs. The requirement uses the definition of Australian content which is set out in the Broadcasting Services (Australian Content and Children's Television) Standards 2020. This is the definition that is already used for commercial free-to-air and other subscription television broadcasters, and it's therefore the appropriate, consistent definition.”
“Without government intervention, there is no guarantee that streaming services will produce Australian content and make it available to Australian consumers. There are streaming services operating here in Australia that currently have zero Australian content. Without Australian stories, Australian voices and Australian content, our country will be poorer, our society will be poorer and, certainly, our creative industries will be poorer. The Communications Legislation Amendment (Australian Content Requirement for Subscription Video On Demand (Streaming) Services) Bill 2025 amends the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 and subordinate legislation to allow for an Australian screen content requirement on subscription video-on-demand streaming services.”
“These local content requirements were updated in the 1990s to apply to free-to-air and other subscription television broadcasters, requiring broadcasters to commission a minimum level of Australian content every year. This is based on either hours, in the case of free-to-air commercial television broadcasters, or, in the case of other subscription broadcasters, a percentage of their total drama expenditure in Australia. These requirements stabilise the market and act as a safeguard for the Australian screen production sector. But, unlike free-to-air broadcasting services and other subscription television services, streaming services currently have no requirements to make Australian content available on their platforms. The ready availability of cheap content produced in other countries risks drowning out Australian stories.”
“The ABC charter includes the requirement for the ABC to broadcast programs that contribute to Australia's sense of national identity, that inform and entertain and that reflect the cultural diversity of the community. The SBS charter states that the SBS's principal function is 'to provide multilingual and multicultural broadcasting and digital media services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect Australia's multicultural society'. Australian commercial television stations had their first content quotas for commercial television introduced in the 1960s to ensure that Australians had access to stories and to see their culture, language and values reflected on the screen.”
“It's cultural colonialism, where we are all absorbing the same stories and the same standards, becoming homogenous with the cultures of the sending countries, and this undermines the special uniqueness that is Australia and Australian society in all its many forms. In 2023, this government released the national cultural policy, Revive : a place for every story , a story for every place . It was the first national cultural policy in a decade. As one of the five pillars of this policy, the Australian government committed to introduce requirements for Australian screen content on streaming services to ensure continued access to local stories and content. Today the Albanese Labor government is legislating for streaming services and subscription services to have guaranteed Australian content. Public broadcasters already have this requirement.”
“Public broadcasters, commercial broadcasters, cable and streaming are all part of Australia's television landscape now and will be into the future. We are less likely to watch free-to-air television and live broadcasts. We are less likely to go to the movies in a cinema. We are more likely to be watching on-demand streaming services. And the shows we are being offered have changed as well. They are more likely to be relatively cheap-to-make reality TV shows or programs imported from overseas, known as global content, because it's cheaper to buy up the international rights and show the same programs around the world wherever the streaming service has a presence.”
“Australian stories help make sense of our past, define ourselves in the present and promote Australia—our people, our creativity and our country—to the world. They bring us together with shared understandings and enable the exchange of experiences, ideas and perspectives. All Australians benefit when we are represented by and can hear our voices in the stories brought to the big and small screens. It makes us proud of who we are. But the way we consume media has very much changed since the 1980s. Major structural changes in the way media is provided to us has meant audience viewing habits have changed. Australian audiences, like audiences around the world, are increasingly engaging with content across multiple platforms.”
“Our stories and our actors were not only on our screens; they were being exported to the world, and suddenly people in New York and London were watching our stories. We should never underestimate how important it is for Australians to see themselves on screen. It helps us to better understand ourselves, our neighbours and our community, and it allows the world to see us and understand us a little better. Australian stories play an important role in shaping Australia's national identity, fostering social inclusion and encouraging cultural expression. Humans are hardwired to understand the world through stories. They are our greatest cultural asset. They build a sense of community, identity, collective wellbeing and shared identity. They reflect and define who we are as a nation and make us recognisable on the international stage.”
“There was Molly's death on A Country Practice . There was Home and Away , The Young Doctors , Prisoner , T he Big Gig , T he Comedy Company and The D Generation . Australian producers, writers and artists were churning out high-quality television and movie content showcasing Australian stories, Australian humour and Australian culture. They gave jobs to Australians: writers, actors, directors, producers, camera operators, costume designers, set designers and so many more. Also, importantly, we were seeing Australian stories and Australian actors on screen and hearing Australian accents. There had been a bit of cultural cringe prior to this era. We tended to import our culture, in particular from England and increasingly from America. Then suddenly we, the Australian industry, were kicking goals around the world.”
“They say the culture you grow up with, in your childhood and teenage years, will always be the culture that speaks to you. I was lucky enough to be a child and teenager in the late seventies and early eighties. This was an era when the rest of the world discovered Australian culture. It was an era of fantastic Australian bands, and it was an era that spawned so many iconic Australian movies and TV shows. There was Picnic at Hanging Rock . Who can forget Miranda? There was Mad Max , the franchise that launched Mel Gibson—sorry! There was Breaker Morant , We of the Never Never , Dogs in Space , C rocodile Dundee 'That's not a knife!'— Puberty Blues , The Light h orsemen and Gallipoli . And on TV there were the soapies. There was Neighbours . Everyone stayed home for Scott and Charlene's wedding.”
“Will they look in the eyes of the next generation—our children, our grandchildren—and show them a glossy brochure with no substance, no plans, no targets and only the meaningless word 'welcome'? How insulting!”
“To say, 'If it does happen, it would be welcome,' is an insulting crumb thrown from the table to keep the supplicants quiet. To those who say they care about the costs of electricity, what will you say to the households, businesses and industries in their electorates about a credible way to replace the energy generation that left the system under your watch or announced its imminent closure under your watch? When the evidence is there that coal and gas are an expensive form of generation and that nuclear is the most expensive form of generation for a country like Australia, how can they seriously look at the renewables transformation already well underway and say they want to stop progress?”
“They are represented by people who don't believe in climate change or don't understand the science or are not willing to do anything about it or all three. Droughts, floods, cyclones, increasingly powerful and more frequent storms, algal blooms and marine die-offs as we have seen in South Australia—these affect us all, but they particularly affect farmers, aquaculture, commercial fishing and tourism, which are all largely based in the regions. The flow-on effects are felt by the towns and regional communities that support them. Those opposite say they understand the science of climate change, but what are they going to say to their communities about their lack of action on climate change? A lack of a target or plan shows they don't care. It isn't a priority.”
“One the left, it says, 'Step 1: steal underpants.' On the right, it says, 'Step 3: profit.' And, in the middle, next to step 2, is a large question mark. That's pretty much the coalition's energy plan in three easy steps. Step 1 is get rid of net zero—tick! Step 3 has the possibility of 'welcome' outcomes. Step 2 has a big question mark. But don't you worry your pretty little head about it; it's all good. Here, look at this glossy brochure! While this refers to their lack of energy plan, there is also a complete lack of plan to deal with climate change. The irony is that the coalition seats are largely based in rural and regional areas—some of the areas most at risk from the impacts of climate change.”
“There's no detail on addressing the lack of market interest in investing in coal fired or nuclear powered stations—zip. There's no detail on addressing the costs of energy for households or businesses that will be made worse by going away from the cheapest form of energy generation and instead backing more expensive forms of energy generation that need major capital injections—nil. Bizarrely, this reminded me of the TV series South Park . Stay with me, and I'll give you a brief synopsis to explain. It's an episode called 'The underpants gnomes'. Our heroes, Cartman, Stan, Kyle and Kenny—you pick who is whom—meet another boy who insists the gnomes are stealing his underpants. It turns out that he's right. Our heroes trace the gnomes back to their cave, where they can see the cunning plan. On the wall is a chart.”
“That all sounds very confusing and like a word salad that's trying to please everybody or at least not offend anybody—but, of course, it really fails to do anything. But fear not: it must be a real policy because they've also released a glossy leaflet! It's full of dot points of lovely motherhood statements that sound great but have 'net zero' detail on how they intend to achieve them. There's no detail on addressing the shortfall in energy caused by 24 of the 28 coal fired power plants announcing their closures under the Morrison government with nothing done to replace them—nada. There's no detail on addressing the unreliability of ageing coal fired power plants that their owners know are uneconomic to repair or replace—zilch.”
“A lot has happened since the member for New England proposed this motion to the House. We now know that the party the member may or may not be a member of—the Nationals—has rejected net zero. We also know that their partner in coalition—the Liberal Party—has obediently followed suit, sort of. They tried to have a bet each way, with the opposition leader saying they were abandoning net zero but that somehow they were going to stay in the Paris Agreement while also going against the entire principles of the agreement, no matter what their talking points say. Their commitment to reducing emissions only goes as far as entertaining it as a possible outcome that would be 'welcome' but certainly not worth trying to achieve.”
“We put $8.5 billion into bulk-billing, and from 1 January you'll only pay $25 for a prescription on the PBS. And today we're debating the EPBC Act to fix our broken environmental laws. Meanwhile, those opposite squabble amongst themselves. They split, get back together again, threaten to split again and discuss the PM's T-shirt choices. I know some of my colleagues here are Swifties, but I'm an eighties girl. On this side of the House, our theme song is Queen's 'Don't Stop Me Now'. On that side, it's The Clash's 'Should I stay or Should I Go'.”
“What has the Albanese Labor government been doing over the past six months? I'm glad you asked. We've legislated payday super. We've set a climate target of 62-70 per cent emissions reduction by 2035. Over 111 large-scale renewable projects have been approved, and a further 29 projects are in the pipeline. We expanded the five per cent home guarantee scheme to make it easier to buy your own home. We cut HECS debts by 20 per cent. We legislated to protect penalty rates and overtime rates. We've introduced the home battery subsidy scheme, and now over 110,000 additional Australian homes have a battery. We announced the solar sharer scheme so all Australians can benefit from renewable energy. We delivered dignity into our aged care system and made the system sustainable.”
“We've opened the on-off ramp at Majors Road, and the tram overpasses are progressing at pace. A couple of weeks ago the tunnel borer for the North-South Corridor arrived. Australians voted for a government with vision and purpose, a government with a proven track record of delivering for the Australian people. Australians voted for a government that would listen and deliver, and, six months on, that's exactly what we're doing.”
“There's not much point in getting a prescription if you can't afford to fill it and take the medicine regularly. We've listed more contraceptives on the PBS so women have more choice. Today we've been debating our reforms to the EPBC Act—groundbreaking reforms that deliver on all the recommendations of the 2020 Samuel review. They establish a national environmental protection agency and reform the broken offsets mechanism, which I know so many of my local constituents in Boothby have raised concerns with me about. These bills will deliver protection for the environment, fast decisions and certainty for business, industry, developers and investors. It's received the approval of Professor Samuel and former secretary of the Treasury Ken Henry. Locally we've opened the redeveloped Marino Community Hall—fantastic.”
“We have an ageing population, with more and more demand on aged-care and home supports, yet no new beds have been built in years. The new Aged Care Act puts the older person at the centre of the system with a rights based system and ensures aged care will be sustainable in the future. We strengthened Medicare with the largest-ever investment of $8.5 billion to ensure nine out of 10 GP visits are bulk-billed by 2030. This started on 1 November, and over a thousand GP practices across the country have signed up already to be fully bulk-billing. I'm aware of at least four in Boothby, and that's in addition to those who were previously bulk-billing. We passed legislation to ensure that, from 1 January, people will only pay $25 for a prescription on the PBS.”
“That's over 110,000 Australian homes now enjoying cheap or free electricity. Today we announced the Solar Sharer scheme. Because of the amazing uptake of solar panels and batteries and renewables generally, electricity has a negative price in the middle of the day. The Solar Sharer scheme will enable people in my home state of South Australia, New South Wales and South-East Queensland to enjoy three hours of free electricity in the middle of the day, starting 1 July next year. Whether you have solar panels or not, you can also benefit from the cheapest form of electricity—renewables. We've delivered reform to our aged-care system, ensuring dignity for older Australians. We know the aged-care system has not been fit for purpose for a long time.”
“We've cut HECS debts by 20 per cent, and over the next couple of weeks those with HECS debts will start getting messages from the ATO telling them the 20 per cent reduction has been applied to their debt. We passed Baby Priya's bill, which enables parents experiencing the worst moment of their life—the stillbirth or death of a baby—to have the time and space to grieve before returning to work. We legislated to protect penalty and overtime rates—hard to believe this was necessary, but apparently it was. If you work irregular, unsociable or long hours, you should be paid for the inconvenience and impact it has on your life. This is the Australian way of fair work. We introduced the home battery subsidy scheme, and, to date, in the less than four months since it has become operational, over 110,000 home batteries have been installed.”
“Yesterday marked six months since the re-election of the Albanese Labor government. We went to the election with a suite of policies and proposals, and already we've hit the ground running. In just six months we've set an ambitious and achievable climate target of 62 to 70 per cent emissions reduction by 2035, helping us deliver net zero by 2050. Over 111 large-scale renewable projects have already been approved—enough to power 13 million homes—and a further 29 projects are in the pipeline for approval. We've made it easier for first home buyers to purchase a home by expanding the Home Guarantee Scheme. This means first home buyers need only a five per cent deposit to get out of the rental market and into the property market, starting to build their own equity instead of paying someone else's mortgage.”
“The Samuel review recognised that, for some bad actors, breaching the law is just the cost of doing business, so the reforms increase the penalties for the most serious and significant breaches of legislation, and they allow courts to respond proportionately to the most egregious breaches. I'm so pleased that we've introduced this EPBC bill. This is really important legislation. This is legislation that my electorate—and in fact all of Australia—has been waiting for for too long. It responds fully to the recommendations of the Samuel review. It's legislation that the environment needs and that business, industry and developers need; it's legislation that this country needs. I commend the bill to the House.”
“The reforms will include a new definition of unacceptable impact specific to each protected matter. This will set clear and upfront criteria for impacts that cannot be approved unless the project meets the national interest test. It will increase transparency, consistency and certainty of decisions. This applies to protected matters under the EPBC Act, including World Heritage areas, threatened species and wetlands of international importance. Now, we'd like to think that all players in this area would value our environment—that they'd do the right thing; however, we do live in the real world.”
“A net gain could be achieved either by the proponent delivering directly on an offset—a new and improved offset that is a real offset—or through an upfront financial contribution to a restoration fund. Proposed reforms will introduce new options for offsetting. Projects proponents can deliver an offset themselves or pay for the government to do it via a restoration contribution payment—or a combination of both. The proposed changes will also allow certain biodiversity certificates, issued under the Nature Repair Market, to be used for environmental offsetting, and this helps ensure that there are enough environmental offsets to provide real, lasting environmental benefits. Part of the clarity the EPBC bill will bring includes a clear understanding of go and no-go zones.”
“I constantly hear from people very concerned that the current offsets regime is not effective and has enabled polluters to consider paying for cheap and ineffective offsets as a cost of doing business that they're willing to pay. Under the new system, projects will be required in the first instance, by law, to avoid, mitigate or repair damage to protected matters where possible. Any residual significant impacts on nationally protected matters must be fully offset to achieve a net gain for the environment. They must leave the environment better off. The current legislation requires no net loss, so moving to a net gain for the environment is a massive step forward.”
“The reforms will also allow the environment minister to make national environment standards, standards that will set boundaries for decisions to ensure they deliver improved environmental outcomes. The standards will protect the environment, give business clear rules and help decision-makers be fair and consistent. I know that my electorate of Boothby will be particularly interested in the remake of the environment offset system. Sometimes projects can harm the environment in ways that can't be avoided, and, when this happens, steps must be taken to compensate or make up for that damage—an environmental offset. The offset could take the form of an action, a payment or both.”
“More efficient and robust project assessments and approvals will allow us to better respond to and deliver on national priorities that work for the betterment of our country, like the renewable energy transition, a future made in Australia and the housing that we need, which those opposite don't seem to understand. It will also give business, industry and investors the certainty of a fast yes or a fast no for their proposals, and accountability and transparency in decision-making to give all Australians confidence in these laws. And, of course, most notably, these laws will establish Australia's first-ever independent environmental protection agency, which will be a strong, independent regulator with a clear focus on ensuring better compliance with and stronger enforcement of Australia's new environmental laws.”
“Professor Samuel himself has publicly backed this bill as meeting all of the recommendations in his report. These laws are a targeted and balanced package of reforms to the EPBC Act centred on three key pillars. Stronger environmental protection and restoration— (Quorum formed) As I was saying, I know that net zero is very triggering for those opposite, but you can't say that you understand climate science and that you understand and care about the impact that's happening on our planet and our country if you then turn around and say you want to slow down any action and turn a target into an ambition. These stronger environmental protection and restoration laws won't just deliver better protections for our special places but restore and regenerate them for future generations, which those opposite clearly don't care about.”
“The Albanese Labor government is committed to reforming our national environment laws to deliver stronger environmental protections, reduce duplication and boost accountability and transparency in decision-making. It has been five long years since Professor Graeme Samuel tabled his report for the former environment minister Sussan Ley, and our laws remain broken. They aren't working for the environment, they aren't working for business or industry and they aren't working for investors. Our unique natural environment is irreplaceable, and we owe it to our children and our grandchildren to do everything we can to protect it. But the Samuel review told us that the environment is going backwards. These reforms that we're presenting today are based on the recommendations from Professor Samuel in his 2020 report.”
“We've put net zero in the objects of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation and in the Australian Renewable Energy Agency Act and made it relevant to other key agencies, such as Infrastructure Australia and Export Finance Australia. Now, I know the concept of net zero is triggering for those opposite, but you can't say you understand the science of climate change, the impacts it's already having on our planet and our country, and what it will do in the future, if you then turn around and say, 'We want to slow down any action and turn a target into an "ambition".' That brings me to this bill. The Environment Protection Reform Bill delivers modern, fit-for-purpose, national environment laws that ensure big gains for both the environment and business.”
“We've increased recycling capacity by more 1.4 million tonnes a year, diverting recyclables from landfill. We've established the world's first nature repair market, making it easier to invest in nature restoration. And of course let's not forget that our home battery scheme has delivered over 110,000 additional batteries in just over four months. We've given the safeguard mechanism teeth, requiring net emission reductions from our 215 biggest emitters of five per cent a year—equivalent to taking two-thirds of the cars off the road by 2030. And we've brought in new vehicle emission standards, giving Australians more choice of cheaper-to-run cars. We've legislated to bring the Climate Change Authority back, to play a meaningful role in advising government.”
“We have approved 111 renewable energy projects, producing enough electricity to power more than 13 million homes, and we have approved a further 29 projects. We've protected an extra 95 million hectares of Australian ocean and land, expanding marine parks around Macquarie, Heard and McDonald islands. We've established Environment Information Australia, to give the public and business easier access to the latest environmental data. We've doubled the funding to better look after national parks, including Kakadu and Uluru. We've doubled the Indigenous Rangers Program. We've invested over $600 million to better protect our threatened plants and animals and to tackle feral animals and weeds. And we've invested $200 million to clean up our rivers.”
“Labor has delivered every single major environmental reform in Australia's history—Landcare; saving the Franklin; protecting the Daintree and Kakadu; building the largest network of marine parks in the world; and meaningfully addressing the threat of climate change. Since 2022, the Albanese Labor government has passed strong laws to force big polluters to cut emissions, so that Australia gets to net zero carbon pollution by 2050. We have reduced Australia's emissions by 29 per cent below 2005 levels already, and we're on track for 43 per cent by 2030. We have committed to 82 per cent renewable energy by 2030, and we're well on the way. Already 18 gigawatts of renewable generation capacity has been installed across Australia since we were elected in 2022.”
“We have the opportunity to make these laws work for business, developers and investors so that they have certainty for investment, so they can get to a fast 'yes' or a fast 'no' without wasting time or money on investments that are never going to come off. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fix these laws and protect our environment, and we've waited too long already. The best time to have done this was perhaps a couple of decades ago. The second-best time was half a decade ago, when the Samuel report was delivered to the previous coalition government. The third-best time is now. Labor is the party of the environment.”
“What I learned from campaigning in 2021 and 2022 was that I was not alone in Boothby in my sense of frustration about the then coalition government's lack of action and, indeed, actual sabotage of the environment. They had two record-breaking election losses in a row, but those opposite seem still not to be listening to what the Australian public is telling them or what the environment's telling them—or business, developers and investors. The current environment laws are broken. They don't adequately protect the environment. But they also don't work for business developers or investors. We now have the opportunity to fix our broken environment laws. We have the opportunity to protect our environment, which we depend upon for our Australian way of life.”