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The Australian Greens have called Peter Dutton’s climate target comments ‘a waste of breath’, given the Liberals have zero chance of winning government at the next election and no chance of overturning a climate majority in the House and Senate.

During the passage of climate legislation in 2022 the Greens secured provisions to ‘Dutton-proof’ the law, ensuring climate targets couldn’t go backwards through any unilateral executive action of a future government. The party said they would continue to use their power in the Senate following the next election to block any weakening of that legislation.

The Greens say with no prospect of forming a majority government or holding the balance of power in the Senate, Dutton and Anthony Albanese should stop confecting a meaningless fight.

This week, Dutton suggested the Liberals would weaken Australia’s 2030 climate targets if elected, but said he wouldn’t announce what those targets were until after the election, an election the Liberals will certainly lose.

And even if against all odds the Coalition were able form a minority government, existing legislation would prevent Dutton from going below the 43 per cent target. 

Further, given likely Senate election results at the next election, there is no foreseeable pathway to change that legislation.

If the 2022 election result was replicated in 2024-25, the Greens and Labor together would have 39 votes in the Senate, a blocking and passing majority.

If the 2019 election result was replicated in 2024-25, the Greens and Labor together would have 37 votes, with at least one independent such as Lidia Thorpe and Tammy Tyrrell (who are not up for election) or David Pocock and Jacqui Lambie (should they be re-elected) likely to provide the final 38th blocking vote.

Leader of the Australian Greens, Adam Bandt, said while Dutton was wasting airtime talking about climate targets he would never have the power to change, the real fight after the next election will be about going further.

With the Greens gearing up to increase their representation in the House and likely to hold balance of power in the Senate as well, Mr Bandt said they were going to use their power to push for stronger climate action, including stopping the next government from opening new coal and gas mines.

Leader of the Australian Greens, Adam Bandt MP:

“The confected 2030 target stoush between Peter Dutton and Anthony Albanese is nothing more than hot air.

“The Liberals haven’t got a chance in hell at winning the next election, and existing climate legislation has been Dutton-proofed so he can’t weaken the targets even if he wanted to.

“Neither Labor nor Liberal targets meet the Paris Agreement climate goals, and instead of a confected debate about something Peter Dutton won’t even have the power to do, we should focus on what the science demands and stop opening new coal and gas mines.

“In a minority Parliament, the Greens will push Labor to stop opening new coal and gas mines, something Labor and Liberal are desperate to avoid talking about. 

“Neither Liberal nor Labor are committed to the Paris goal of keeping global warming below 2 degrees, let alone 1.5 and both want more coal and gas mines. Every new coal and gas mine approved by Labor sets back the transition to clean, cheap renewables, while exporting dirty climate pollution across the globe.”

It’s time the Government implemented the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation of People with Disability that were handed down more than 8 months ago. 

In a government-run public consultation, responders emphasised the importance of implementing the recommendations made by the Royal Commission, as well as greater accountability and evaluation to ensure that implementation is effective and leads to improved outcomes. 

The consultation revealed positive support across stakeholder groups for the recommendations made by the Royal Commission, with the highest support coming from disabled respondents. Many shared the view that the recommendations represent a real opportunity to improve the lives of disabled people.

The recent federal budget had no new funding allocated to implement the recommendations, so advocates are deeply concerned that there will be no tangible action for at least another year.

Jordon Steele-John, Greens Spokesperson for Disability Rights and Services:

“The Royal Commission has presented us with an opportunity to uphold the rights of every disabled person in this country, and Labor is letting that opportunity slip away.

“The job is still far from over, and the Labor government has made shockingly little progress since the report was handed to them more than 8 months ago.

“This consultation confirms what we already know: the disability community, organisations and advocates all want to see positive change in the sector. 

“We’re still yet to see the co-design and consultation that Labor had promised us. Their NDIS legislation and their inaction on these recommendations make it clear that Labor doesn’t care about disabled people and our lives.

“We will continue to put pressure on Labor to implement the recommendations, fund the NDIS and ensure future disability legislation is created by and for disabled people. 

Greens Deputy Leader and International Aid and Global Justice Spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has stated that while the Albanese Government’s decision to provide an additional $10 million in aid to Gaza is a positive development, it must be accompanied by more long term aid funding to UNRWA and critically, sanctions on Israel.

Senator Mehreen Faruqi:

“More aid funding for Gaza, where so many Palestinians have endured months of genocidal violence by Israel and are facing a deliberate famine, is the bare minimum.

“More aid funding won’t compensate for the fact that the Albanese Government is complicit in Israel’s genocide and has failed to impose a single consequence on Israel for its horrific slaughter of 36,000 Palestinians.

“The Albanese Government merely calling on Israel to stop blocking aid is not good enough. We need actual sanctions, not more flimsy calls and weasel words that the genocidal state of Israel will inevitably ignore.

“Labor needs to show real leadership and take tangible action like backing South Africa’s ICJ genocide case against Israel and ending the two-way arms trade with Israel.

“We must not forget that Labor abruptly suspended aid funding to UNRWA, without a shred of evidence and has yet to apologise for that reckless and dangerous decision and must increase funding to UNRWA.”

The Australian Greens have lashed Labor for their refusal to condemn the war crimes committed by the State of Israel and Hamas, after the government blocked a Greens attempt to include condemnation of the actions of the IDF in criticism of October 7.

Labor and the Liberals voted against condemning Israel’s war crimes on October 16, asserting that Parliament ‘stands with Israel’ and asserting that it had a right to defend itself, despite reports of Israeli war crimes in the initial 9 days of the conflict. Since then, Labor has voted against reconsidering this position six times.

The report released by the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel yesterday is clear. Both Hamas and the State of Israel’s military forces have committed war crimes in the fighting on and since October 7th. 

The Commission further concluded that the immense numbers of civilian casualties and widespread destruction of civilian objects and vital civilian infrastructure were the “inevitable results of Israel’s chosen strategy for the use of force” during these hostilities, undertaken with intent to cause maximum damage, disregarding distinction, proportionality and adequate precautions, and thus unlawful.

Since their refusal to condemn Israel’s war crimes, the Government was given six opportunities in early 2024 by the Greens to support a motion to reverse their “stand[ing] with Israel”, call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire and end their support for the invasion. Each time they voted against the motion being brought on for consideration.

Senator Jordon Steele-John, Greens Spokesperson for Peace and Foreign Affairs:
“War crimes must be called out wherever and whenever they occur.  Labor’s refusal to condemn Israel as well as Hamas’ is a damning indictment of their willingness to turn a blind eye to the IDF’s actions since October 7,” Senator Steele-John said.

“The United Nations Commission’s report makes clear that both Hamas and the State of Israel have committed heinous war crimes and crimes against humanity.

“Labor had the opportunity in Parliament to vote to condemn Israel’s war crimes, and they voted against it. Since then, Labor has joined with the Liberals to block every attempt to push them to reconsider their stance.

“Simply repeating that Israel has a “right to defend itself” whitewashes the horrific destruction inflicted by Israel on Gaza, Rafah, and the Palestinian people – each of which has been devastatingly catalogued by the UN. No one has the right to commit war crimes, and Labor must call them out.

“Our government can not pick and choose when to respect International law. Our nation must respond to the State of Israel’s crimes in the same way we have rightfully responded to those committed by Hamas.

“It’s time for Labor to end the two-way arms trade that is fueling this genocide, sanction Prime Minister Netanyahu and his war cabinet and expel Israel’s ambassador to Australia until the State of Israel is compliant with the orders of the ICJ and International Law.

“We must always remember that peace is the goal and a just and lasting peace for Palestinians and Israelis has been made so much harder to achieve through the actions of the State of Israel and Hamas.“

The amendment blocked by Labor on October 16, added to a motion condemning attacks on Israel:
Mr Bandt moved, as an amendment—Omit paragraph (2), substitute:
(2) condemns war crimes perpetrated by the state of Israel, including the bombing of Palestinian civilians, and calls for an immediate ceasefire between all parties and an end to the war on Gaza, recognising also that for there to be peace there must be an end to the state of Israel’s illegal occupation of the Palestinian Territories;”

The motion subsequently opposed by Labor six times:
That the House:
(1) notes that since the House resolution of 16 October 2023 concerning Israel and Gaza, which supported the State of Israel’s looming invasion of Gaza by stating that the House ‘stands with Israel’, the following have occurred:
(a) an appalling and increasing toll of deaths and injuries caused by the State of Israel’s bombing and invasion of Gaza;
(b) a growing humanitarian catastrophe caused by the State of Israel’s blockade, bombing and invasion of Gaza; and
(c) the State of Israel is the subject of recent International Court of Justice orders in South
Africa’s case regarding the prevention of genocide;
(2) therefore does not support the State of Israel’s continued invasion of Gaza and calls for an immediate and permanent ceasefire; and
(3) calls on the Australian Government to end its support for the State of Israel’s invasion of Gaza.