• Andrew Bartlett

Image: Leorex/Flickr

08 November 2011We need to acknowledge those who helped lay the foundations for carbon pricing, writes Andrew Bartlett in The Drum Unleashed.

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There was open celebration, and no doubt some relief, amongst government members in the House of Representatives when the package of carbon pricing bills passed that chamber on October 12, 2011.

Many reports described the climate change legislation as having passed the Federal Parliament. That was not strictly true of course, as the bills still needed to be passed - in the same form - by the Senate. Given that was all but assured, the Labor Government understandably wanted to give a clear message that the climate change package had been delivered.

Equally understandably, the Greens want to highlight the significance of today's final Senate vote on the package of climate change measures. Tuesday, November 8th, 2011 has a good chance of being seen for many years to come as a very significant day in the history of the Australian Parliament, perhaps ranking alongside other major, controversial legislative packages such as the first Native Title laws - passed by the Senate on December 22 1991, or the package of bills bringing in the GST, agreed to by the Senate on June 28, 1999.

It is no surprise that Labor and the Greens both seek to emphasise the impact of their respective roles in reaching this landmark. And it is equally no surprise that I think it is important to acknowledge the work of those who came before, which helped lay the foundations for this significant achievement.

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Photo: Leorex/Flickr