This budget is a cynical attempt to buy votes instead of planning for the nation’s looming challenges. What we needed was a plan to tackle the climate emergency through a real investment in renewables and a managed transition away from coal and other fossil fuels. What we needed was a plan to tackle growing inequality and to fund our essential services. Instead Scott Morrison and Josh Frydenberg have stuck their heads in the sand and delivered a few election bribes.

Treasury spokesperson, Senator Peter Whish-Wilson, today commented on new tax statistics released by the ATO revealing tax credits to oil and gas giants have ballooned to $324 billion. 

"The PRRT is the most egregious rort in the Australian tax code.

"The failure of successive Liberal and Labor governments to address this problem has resulted in oil and gas companies accumulating a whopping $324 billion worth of tax offsets.

"This equates to around 70% of the Commonwealth Government’s total revenue.

Today’s disappointing final report into the banking and financial services industry will slow, but not end decades of money grabbing and unethical conduct, the Australian Greens have said today.

“The enthusiasm from the Liberal and Labor parties to accept these recommendations tells you all you need to know. The financial services industry is one of the biggest donors to both old parties, and they will all be laughing all the way to the bank tonight,” Leader of the Australian Greens Senator Richard Di Natale said.

“Today’s Mid-year Economic Financial Outlook shows that the Coalition is totally out of touch with everyone in our community who is feeling under pressure. The Prime Minister hopes to buy the next election with a surplus built upon cuts to essential services and heroic assumptions about wages growth," Greens Co-Deputy Leader Senator Larissa Waters said.

The Australian Greens are calling for an immediate halt to the export of native animals, and an independent inquiry into how hundreds of endangered and rare Australian birds have been exported for sale.

“Reports this week that rare and endangered birds are being sold to shady dealers, with the approval of the Federal Government, are shocking and must be independently investigated,"  Greens Environment and Trade spokesperson Sarah Hanson-Young said.

The Greens will move for responsibility and funding to be restored to the ABC to share content with the Asia-Pacific region in the Senate next week.

“It is high time the Morrison Government gave the ABC back its job, sharing its world-class content and journalism in our region. Next week in the Senate, I will call on the Government to do so,” Greens media spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.

 “The ABC is creating high-quality Australian drama and kids TV that audiences love. If that wasn’t enough, we know it is also our most trusted news source.

The Morrison Government and the Labor Party have thrown Australia under the bus in teaming up to pass the dodgy Trans-Pacific Partnership today, giving big corporations more power than elected Governments.

“Labor has abandoned its own party platform, Australian workers, our environment and our sovereignty in rolling over for the Morrison Government to pass the TPP,”  Greens trade spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.

“This is a deal for big corporations, at the expense of the rights of the community.

I rise to speak on the Customs Amendment (Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership Implementation) Bill 2018 and the related bill, and associate myself with the comments made by my Greens colleagues. How is it that, time and time again, we come to this place and see bill after bill that the people of Australia never asked for and do not want? The sway that vested interests have on this government is truly horrifying; and I am even more horrified that this piece of legislation comes here with bipartisan support.

The Australian Greens are calling on the Labor Party to dump its support of the dodgy TPP ahead of the debate in the Senate today.

“The dodgy TPP deal was designed by corporations, for corporations. It is baffling to Australian workers,  and the broader community, that the Labor Party has abandoned its base, and unions, to give this toxic trade deal the green light,” Greens trade spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.