Australia’s plastic recycling and waste reduction targets have been slashed and rebranded in an attempt to hide inaction and failure from the Government and big polluters. 
 
The Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) today launched its ANZPAC Plastics Pact, which undercuts the organisation’s own 2025 National Packaging Targets.
 
Greens spokesperson for Waste and Recycling, Senator Peter Whish-Wilson, said the announcement is a result of the Government’s recent refusal to legislate mandated packaging targets in the Australian Senate.

Monday 17 May, 2021

Australian Greens Disability spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John has called for an urgent review into the Health Department to determine why disabled people have been discriminated against in the Morrison government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and, in particular, phase 1a of the vaccine rollout.

The Senate has supported a Greens referral to the Senate Community Affairs References Committee to conduct a Senate inquiry into the purpose, intent and adequacy of the Disability Support Pension (DSP). 
 
There have been a series of changes and cost-saving measures over recent years that have reduced the number of people able to access the Disability Support Program. Since then, there has been a sharp decline in people applying for and being approved for the DSP. 
 

Australian Greens Housing spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has said that Labor’s plan doesn’t go nearly far enough to tackle the housing crisis, slash waiting lists and provide universal housing.

Senator Faruqi said:

“The scale of the housing crisis requires serious ambition and unprecedented funding. Labor has missed the mark on that front.

The Liberals and Labor have today voted to fund new fossil fuel projects with public money through the Northern Australia Infrastructure Fund, enabling the $5 billion fund to be used on projects like the Beetaloo Basin gas project and Adani.

By siding with the Liberals and voting to put public money into new coal and gas projects, Labor has betrayed climate action, Greens Leader Adam Bandt MP said.

I, and also on behalf of Senator Waters, move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) Australian school students are crying out for clear and direct education on sex and consent,

(ii) the Federal Government's 'Respect matters' resources for schools were announced in 2015, re-announced twice and launched six years later to the condemnation of experts and survivors for promoting harmful ideas about consent and relationships,

The Australian Greens have used their Budget in Reply speech to announce a new tax on extreme profiteering by billionaires during the pandemic.  
The new tax, which only applies to the 122 richest Australians, will raise $29 billion. It will be taxed on the amount their wealth increased between March 2020 and March 2021.