Tanya Plibersek’s nature positive reforms push back on the legislative agenda

Labor is renewing its push to pass legislation establishing an environmental watchdog in the final sitting fortnight before a federal election is called.

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Labor is renewing its push to pass legislation establishing an environmental watchdog in one of the last parliamentary sitting weeks before the federal election, reopening a battlefront with industry leaders, the Coalition and Western Australia over its green agenda.

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek revealed she was working with “all parties” to secure the passage of the legislation through the Senate, after the reforms became blocked late last year when Anthony Albanese caved to pressure and killed a deal with the Greens.

The nature positive reforms were slated for debate on February 6 in a draft Senate program, re­igniting criticism of laws creating a federal environmental protection agency.

Ms Plibersek approached business and industry leaders in an attempt to cultivate support for the bill, sources told The Australian, with only a handful of sitting weeks remaining before the federal election, due by May 17.

“The government has a bill before the Senate to establish Australia’s first federal Environment Protection Agency,” a government spokeswoman said. “We’re working to fix John Howard’s broken environment laws so they are better for nature, and better for business. We’ll keep working with all parties to get it passed in the Senate.”

The Prime Minister is understood to have stepped in to pull the plug on Ms Plibersek’s deal with the Greens in November, following appeals from WA Premier Roger Cook.

After a push from federal Labor backbenchers to put the laws back on the agenda, Mr Cook on Wednesday reiterated his opposition to the bill over fears it would damage the state’s mining-based economy.

“We cannot tolerate laws which damage WA’s economy because it damages the nation and the Prime Minister is more than aware of that,” he said. “I’ve got a message for those backbenchers … Your standard of living, the reason why you can afford your long mac and your lattes, is because of WA industry and the WA economy.

“Do not for a moment think we will stand by idly and allow you to damage our economy because ultimately, it will damage your standard of living.”

Opposition environment spokesman Jonathon Duniam called on Mr Albanese to rule out forging a new deal with the Greens to pass the legislation, saying passing the nature positive legislation shortly before an election would be a “disaster for our country”.

“The Prime Minister needs to regain control amid this chaos, and scrap these laws that are scheduled for parliament next week,” he said.

“The Prime Minister said in WA last year that he wouldn’t do a deal with the Greens, yet he is keeping the legislation alive in Canberra.

“Clearly his word again means nothing.”

Opposition legal affairs spokesman Michaelia Cash said Mr Albanese had perpetrated a “betrayal of breathtaking proportions” against WA. “Mr Albanese was happy to take credit for taking the laws off the table late last year but that was just a sneaky smokescreen that has now been exposed,’’ she said.

Mr Albanese said he would seek to pass bills supporting new industries in critical minerals through Production Tax Credit and enshrining fee-free TAFE, as well as “new legislation”. He added Labor would push to pass its electoral reforms measures, though a deal had not been struck to secure its passage. “We think there’s a need for greater transparency. We believe in electoral reform,” Mr Albanese told the ABC.

“We’ll continue to advocate for it, but we’ll wait and see what happens in the next fortnight over that, and a range of other ­legislation.”

Labor rammed more than 30 pieces of legislation through the Senate in the final sitting week of the year, with the environmental laws, electoral reforms and superannuation changes remaining on the agenda.