SUBJECTS: National Party self-indulgence; Government’s failure on climate policy

JOURNALIST: What would you like to see in an outcome today from the National Party? And do you think we will get one?

ANTHONY ALBANESE, LEADER OF THE AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY:Well, this is such an act of self-indulgence, to have National Party ministers, including the Deputy Prime Minister, acting as if they're not part of the Coalition Government. What we want to see is a legislated target. And unless it's legislated, they're not being fair dinkum. And when Scott Morrison goes to Glasgow, Barnaby Joyce will be acting Prime Minister of this country, someone who has been a climate change skeptic, someone who has been a wrecker, and now they're wrecking their own government.

JOURNALIST: Do you think there's a risk that the Prime Minister may not go to Glasgow with an agreement? And what would happen then?

ALBANESE: Well, I'm sure this is just a big pantomime. And what we will see is an adoption of Net Zero by 2050, but without any significant increase in a target, which is necessary, for 2030. And without it being legislated. It's just a charade that we're seeing. Just like before the 2007 election. We have to remember that john Howard, after 12 years of government decided that he didwant to ratify the Kyoto Protocol after all, and he did want an emissions trading scheme. Then as soon as the election was over, they went back into wrecking mode. And what we could see from this government is trying to slide through into a fourth term. People won't take them seriously. If you want serious action on climate change, we have to change the government.

JOURNALIST: You said there'd be significant increase in that medium term target. What is that for Labor is that beyond what Bill Shorten had proposed at the last election?

ALBANESE: We'll make our announcements after Glasgow. I've been very consistent. One of my first announcements as leader was net zero emissions by 2050. And since then, we've announced a range of programs including making electric vehicles cheaper, solar panels being available for community use, the rewiring the nation to fix transmission of electricity to bring it into the 21st century so that renewables can fit into the grid.

What we know is that action on climate change is good for jobs. It's good for lowering energy prices, and it's good for lowering emissions. That's something Labor's known for decades. It's something that on the eve of an election, the coalition discovers from time to time, before they slip back into do nothing mode. The Prime Minister is someone who when South Australia had the big battery, he jokingly referred to it as like having the Big Banana. He's someone who has dismissed action, ridiculed it, time after time. And now that we have every state and territory government adopting strong targets, we have the Business Council of Australia, the National Farmers Federation, everyone, coming on board. Now, they realize their position is so untenable. And that is what labour has been saying for a long period of time. Thanks very much.

ENDS