A bill to ban fracking and give farmers the right to say no to coal seam gas mining and fracking on their land was introduced to the Senate this afternoon for the sixth time by Greens mining and resources spokesperson and Co-Deputy Leader Senator Larissa Waters.

Senator Waters said:

“The Coaltion, led by the Energy Minister, is rolling out the red carpet for the gas industry and with Labor’s push to open up dirty natural gas drilling in the Galilee and Betaloo Basins there’s now even more urgency in giving farmers the right to say no.

The decision by Queensland's Labor Government to grant approval for the Adani Carmichael coal mine's groundwater management plan is deeply disappointing to anyone who understands the danger posed by climate change, but the fight to stop this mine being built is far from over, the Australian Greens said.

"This fight is far from over. The Adani mine cannot go ahead if we are going to have any chance of slowing rising global greenhouse gas emissions and preventing the worst impacts of dangerous climate change," said Leader of the Australian greens Dr Richard Di Natale.

Statement from Australian Greens Whip Sen. Rachel Siewert:

Today the Australian Greens Party Room met and re-affirmed the positions of our leadership team.

Following a customary spill of the leadership positions, the roles of Leader, Co-Deputy Leader and Whip have all been returned without challenge. The rotating position of Party Room Chair has moved from Adam Bandt MP to Sen. Janet Rice.

The leadership roles for the 46th Parliament are as follows:

The Queensland Greens today launched their federal campaign with leader Dr Richard Di Natale, co-Deputy Leader and Senator for Queensland Larissa Waters, and lower house candidates in the key election battleground state.

Bill Shorten's proposed plan to spend $1.5 billion opening up dirty natural gas drilling in the Galilee and Beetaloo Basins proves that the Labor Party just isn't serious about tackling dangerous climate change and the Greens will use our power in the Senate to block any such move, Leader of the Australian Greens Dr Richard Di Natale and Greens Sen. Larissa Waters said.

"We are in the middle of a climate emergency and we can't be opening up any more coal, oil or gas fields if we are going to hand over a sustainable environment to our children and grandchildren," Di Natale said.

The Greens are today announcing a commitment to bring the voice of the people into politics through trials of Citizens Juries and participatory budgeting, and requiring a parliamentary debate on petitions which receive over 100,000 signatures.

47,570 full-time jobs a year would be created in Queensland under the Greens plan to rapidly transform Australia’s energy system to renewables by 2030.

Greens energy spokesperson Adam Bandt MP said: "coal is the world’s biggest cause of climate change and Australia is the world’s biggest exporter of coal with 80 per cent of what we dig up being sent overseas to be burned. Unless we phase out coal, we can’t deal with climate change and the Greens are the only party to have a plan to do it."

In the key election battleground of Queensland, Greens Senator Larissa Waters said she was excited the election campaign had finally been called by the heartless Morrison Government and she would be campaigning hard over the next 37 days to retain her Senate seat to work for a future for all of us.

Australian Greens Leader Senator Richard Di Natale has welcomed the official start of the election campaign, declaring that the party has never been better equipped to offer a progressive alternative to the old parties. 
 
“We’re ready. On May 18, we’ll give the Australian people a genuine alternative to the old parties, one that offers a positive plan for Australia that will create a better future for all of us,” Sen. Di Natale said.
 

The ANAO report released today has confirmed the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility is a politically motivated waste of taxpayers money designed to funnel cash into projects like the Adani coal mine, the Greens say.

Greens Senator for Queensland Larissa Waters said the ANAO has found the NAIF lacks transparency and has made inconsistent decisions.