Western Australian Greens to hold balance of power in Legislative Council, plan to legislate 2030 emissions target

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The WA Greens say strengthening the government’s climate change legislation will be a top priority after they seize the balance of power in the upper house.

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00:00This is Western Australia's Legislative Council, also known as the Upper House or the House

00:07of Review, but there hasn't been a whole lot of review going on here the past four years

00:12because this place has been dominated by Labor.

00:15With a majority in both Houses of Parliament, the government was able to push legislation

00:19through this place with limited scrutiny.

00:22It would be fair to say the last four years in the Western Parliament, the Upper House

00:26really has been a rubber stamp where no amendments were accepted from the floor of the Parliament.

00:31It's effectively been whatever Labor wants, it gets.

00:34But that's all about to change.

00:37This is what the Legislative Council looks like at the moment.

00:40Labor has 20 of the 36 seats, the Liberals have 7, there are a couple of Nationals, one

00:46Green and a few Independents.

00:48This is what it's projected to look like after Saturday's election.

00:52Labor has 16 seats, the Liberals have 11, there are a couple of Nationals, four Greens

00:58and one each to the Legalised Cannabis Party, the Australian Christians and One Nation.

01:04We can expect more debate around legislation this time around.

01:06We're going to expect negotiation around different bills that they want to pass.

01:11And we're going to expect the Greens to properly insert other demands in return for their support.

01:18In order to pass legislation in its third term, the Government will need the support

01:22of either the Liberals or the Greens.

01:24Already, the Greens are pushing to strengthen the Climate Change Bill that was shelved last year.

01:30We were promised climate legislation in the last Parliament, it never came on for debate.

01:35So I think it's a really good opportunity in this Parliament to bring back the climate

01:38legislation, but much better legislation than they have.

01:41A legislation that does have a 2030 target.

01:43I think with at least 16 Labor members and four Greens, we're going to see an Upper House

01:47where the Labor Party is beholden to the Greens to deliver whatever outcome that they want.

01:52The new Upper House won't be sworn in until May.

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