Greens leader Adam Bandt says Anthony Albanese 'giving middle finger' to ... trends now
Pressure is mounting on the federal government to close loopholes that threaten to exacerbate the climate crisis - or risk their climate change policy failing.
The contentious safeguard mechanism is one of four key pieces of legislation the government wants passed through the Senate this fortnight, but it will be a fight to do so, as Labor needs to shore up the support of the Greens and independent senators.
The reforms would legislate an emissions reduction target for the country's 215 largest emitters.
However, the Greens are concerned about the provision that allows new fossil fuel projects to begin, while independent senator Jacqui Lambie say the minor party's desire for the perfect policy risks toppling the whole Bill.
And, while the Greens say they're not asking for the Bill to be perfect, only the bare minimum, independent senator David Pocock has used the overnight release of a dire Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report to warn there is no time to waste.
The Greens (pictured Leader Adam Bandt) are concerned about the provision that allows new fossil fuel projects to begin in the federal government's climate change policy
Adam Bandt says the Greens aren't asking for the Bill to be perfect, only the bare minimum, as independent senators say they're running out of time
Greens leader Adam Bandt said Labor was giving the United Nations the 'middle finger' by pressing on with opening new coal and gas mines despite the clear warning it could lead to a climate collapse.
'If Labor proceeds to open new coal and gas mines in the face of this very clear, final warning from the world's scientists and the United Nations, they will be condemning our children to an unbelievable future,' he said on Tuesday morning.
Senator Lambie criticised the Greens, conceding that while the reforms are not perfect, they are a 'perfect opportunity' for a starting point.
'This is your starting point - and you keep working on it, on decreasing those emissions, keep putting up Bills, keep doing deals with the Labor government and keep reducing it that way,' she told ABC Radio.
'If you don't have a starting point here - we haven't got the magic starter - we're not going anywhere. We don't
