Environment Minister Murray Watt says he wants to make a deal with either the Coalition or the Greens, as parliament heads into its final sitting week.
“This is the week that we can pass major changes that deliver a balanced package of reforms that deliver real wins, both to the environment, for business and for the broader community,” he told reporters in Brisbane.
Environment Minister Murray Watt. Alex Ellinghausen
Watt has made offers of concessions on the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act in recent days to both of the government’s opponents in the Senate. It needs the support of either party to move the laws forward.
“There’s a real opportunity for the Greens this week to demonstrate that they have heard the message from the Australian people that they’re not going to keep blocking progress, that they’re not going to make the perfect the enemy of the good, and that they will work with Labor to pass these important reforms that will deliver significant benefits for our natural environment,” Watt said
“Equally, there’s an opportunity this week for the Coalition to just for one week, see if they can focus on something other than who’s going to be the leader of the Liberal Party.”
Watt wouldn’t say whether he would prefer to make a deal with the Greens.
“If we were to pass the laws with the Greens, there will still be very big gains for business. Equally, if we were to pass the laws with the support of the Coalition, there will be very big gains for the environment as well. It’s all about getting that balanced package from Labor’s point of view.”