Jackie Trad targets Greens in first parliament speech since stepping down

Former deputy premier Jackie Trad has used her first speech in State Parliament since resigning from Cabinet to take a swipe at the Greens over environmental policies.

JACKIE Trad has insisted Labor is the only party that can be trusted to deliver better environmental outcomes and has taken a swipe at the Greens in her first speech in State Parliament since resigning from Cabinet.

Speaking from the backbench, the former deputy premier talked up Labor’s environmental policies and hit out at the Greens over its decision in 2009 to vote down the Rudd Government’s efforts to introduce the CPRS.

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The South Brisbane MP is expected to face a tough challenge from the Greens to hold her inner-city seat after she beat the minor party at the 2017 election with a slim 3.5 per cent margin.

“Like many people on Monday night I watched the Four Corners program Climate Wars,” Ms Trad told the House.

“I went to bed despondent about the last decade of failed climate policy and that the opportunity to establish an emissions trading scheme was squandered so recklessly by the Greens political party – who swapped out action on climate change for base political grandstanding.

Queensland's Member for South Brisbane Jackie Trad. (AAP Image/Dan Peled)

“There is no question that the ensuing decade would’ve been a different story than that of continued climate and energy policy failure and the sacrificing of outcomes for raw political ambition.”

Ms Trad talked up the Palaszczuk Government’s 50 per cent renewable energy generation policy by 2030, saying it had created the “economic certainty” to attract $6 billion worth of investment and create 6,000 jobs.

“It’s really clear that when it comes to actually driving down electricity prices through cheaper renewable energy and also ensuring that we are delivering better environmental outcomes, it’s only Labor you can trust,” she said.

Ms Trad also criticised the Morrison Government’s recently unveiled technology investment roadmap, arguing that it seemed “every energy perspective” within the Liberal and National party rooms had been included in the policy.

“This of course is a very safe strategy for a party where there is no unity of perspective on the issue of climate change … and where leadership on the issue is a sure path to a spill motion,” she said.

“Predictably it was delivered with the puerile three word slogan repeated over and over again, technology not taxes.”

Originally published as Jackie Trad targets Greens in first parliament speech since stepping down