2017-02-13
Greens Climate Change & Energy spokesperson Adam Bandt MP today said Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s blaming last year’s South Australian energy blackout on renewables was his ‘children overboard’ moment, where he knew the facts but chose to deceive.
“This is Malcom Turnbull’s ‘children overboard’ moment. Malcolm Turnbull knew the truth, but decided to lie to the Australian public,” Mr Bandt said.
“Despite immediate expert advice that last year’s SA blackout was caused by damage to energy infrastructure, Malcolm Turnbull and his Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg blamed renewables.”
“Malcolm Turnbull has become ‘Malcolm Trump’, peddling his own ‘alternative facts’.”
“Climate change-fuelled bushfires and heatwaves are burning up the country, putting people’s lives and the Australian way of life at risk.”
“Malcolm Turnbull may not have lit the match, but he’s fanning the flames of dangerous bushfires and heatwaves by suggesting we burn more coal.”
“The national energy system is broken. We need to rip up the rules and start again. The Greens have a bill before Parliament that will ensure our national energy system puts reliable and clean energy for people first.”
Greens Senator for South Australia Sarah Hanson-Young said: “We saw last week more of the blame game from the Prime Minister and his Energy Minister after South Australia’s blackouts, but who would believe anything they say, what we’ve found out today is the energy minister knew precisely that the blackout in September had nothing to do with renewable energy.”
“They failed to tell the Australian people that a number of fossil fuel plants were off line. So it wasn’t wind or solar’s fault at all, fossil fuels had a big role to play in the blackouts. He lied in September, and he lied last week. Liar, liar pants on fire.”
Media contact: Adam Pulford, 0429 109 054
TW: @AdamBandt FB: facebook.com/Adam.Bandt.MP
Media Release Climate Change Energy