he Greens are calling on Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek to immediately rule out approving BHP’s proposed Peak Downs coal mine expansion in Queensland.

The expansion is slated cover 4,000 hectares and will involve clearing habitat for the endangered koala, greater glider and other threatened species.

Greens Spokesperson for the Environment Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:

Leader of the Australian Greens Adam Bandt MP has said that mooted ‘tweaks’ to Labor’s Stage 3 tax cuts are not the answer, and that the government should simply scrap the cuts before they come into effect and start again with a plan to tackle the cost of living crisis by spending $244b on measures like dental into Medicare and free childcare.

“Labor shouldn’t be arguing about whether to give Clive Palmer an $8,000 a year tax cut or a $9,000 a year tax cut. He doesn’t deserve either,” Mr Bandt said.

Senator Barbara Pocock, Greens Spokesperson for employment and labour market expert will be speaking on a panel today as part of the Revenue Summit hosted by the Australia Institute. Barbara will be discussing the revenue benefits from having more women in work and the policy pathways to it such as increased paid parental leave and free childcare.

On the 8th of November, the National Cabinet decided to remove the requirement for people to isolate while positive for Covid-19 from the 14th of October.

Lines attributable to Senator Jordon Steele-John, Australian Greens Spokesperson for Health and Disability. 

"The removal of the requirement to isolate has left many people feeling vulnerable and deeply frustrated that their wellbeing is being ignored by the Australian Government.

The latest OECD Education at a Glance report reveals unforgivable cuts to public education spending in Australia during the Covid pandemic, the Greens say. Federal, state and territory governments must properly fund public education to ensure everyone in our community has access to high-quality lifelong learning.

Lines attributable to Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Greens Deputy Leader and spokesperson for Education:

The Albanese Labor Government will fail to achieve its 'no new extinctions' objective if it continues to open new coal and gas projects, the Greens say. 
With habitat clearing and the climate crisis the biggest threat to Australia's native species, the Greens are urging Labor to support their bills for a moratorium on habitat clearing and a Climate Trigger to assess polluting projects for the impact of their emissions on the climate. 
Greens Spokesperson for the Environment Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:

Analysis by the Parliamentary Library estimates that renters across Australia would be $7.1 billion better off if rents had been frozen nationwide for the past 12 months. With rents increasing by 14% nationwide, the average renter is paying $3,151 more for their home than last year. 

The Greens recently called on the Federal Government to intervene in the housing crisis by freezing rents nationwide for two years, followed by ongoing rent caps and an end to no grounds evictions, minimum standards for rental properties and tenant rights to make minor improvements to the home.

AGL’s announcement today that it will be shutting the Loy Yang A power station in the Latrobe Valley nearly a decade earlier than planned adds to the growing pressure on the government to establish a National Energy Transition Authority, the Greens say.

The Greens understand that the Senate will today support our motion requiring Reserve Bank governor Dr Philip Lowe to appear at Senate Estimates.

“Independence does not mean a lack of accountability,” Greens Economic Justice Spokesperson Senator Nick McKim said.

“There are serious questions for Dr Lowe.” 

“Dr Lowe induced people into taking on massive amounts of debt by saying interest rates wouldn’t go up until wages had increased substantially and this was unlikely to be until 2024.”