Adam Bandt to pursue ‘Green New Deal’
Adam Bandt has been elected unopposed as Greens leader, with Larissa Waters and Nick McKim to serve as his deputies.
Greens Senators Nick McKim, Larissa Waters, Greens Member for Melbourne and new Greens leader Adam Bandt and Rachel Siewert speak to the media at a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra, Tuesday, February 4, 2020. (Photo: AAP Image/Mick Tsikas)
Bandt was formally endorsed by federal party room colleagues on Tuesday following the resignation of Richard Di Natale.
He has promised to pursue a “Green New Deal” focused on including dental treatment in Medicare, making education free by abolishing public school fees, and replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy.
Bandt aims to win the balance of power in the upper and lower houses of Federal Parliament at the next election.
In the meantime, he intends to pressure the Morrison Government to take stronger action on climate change.
Bandt labelled the Coalition Government “criminal” for abolishing the carbon price under Tony Abbott and argued climate inaction was fanning the ongoing bushfire crisis.
He also claimed big businesses were “killing people” by contributing to a “climate catastrophe”.
Bandt said the Greens would provide “real opposition” and hold the Morrison government to account.
He said the major parties were “singing from the same song sheet” on coal mining.
“I’m not one of those people who says that Labor and the Liberals are the same,” he told reporters in Canberra.
“But when it comes to coal, Labor is now using exactly the same terminology as the Liberals.”
During the Greens’ party room meeting, Waters was elected for the first co-deputy position unopposed.
The other was a three-way contest between Sarah Hanson-Young, Mehreen Faruqi and McKim.
Bandt has represented the seat of Melbourne since 2010 and was the first Greens member ever elected to the House of Representatives at a general election.
-AAP
