The NSW National Party’s support for the controversial Adani coal-mine in Queensland and rejection of renewable energy could cost it the seat of Lismore at the next state election, according to the NSW Greens.
NSW Greens resources spokesman Jeremy Buckingham has launched a stinging attack on the Nationals after NSW Roads Minister Melinda Pavey yesterday criticised the Lismore City Council for considering a ban on contractors that work on the Adani mine.
Ms Pavey’s Lismore visit followed a poll commissioned by the Nature Conservation Council that found if the Nationals wanted to retain Lismore at the next election ‘they should put forward a candidate who’ll put climate change high on the agenda and push the rapid shift to renewables’.
The poll, published in the Sydney Morning Herald this week, showed the Nationals primary vote at 32.8 per cent, Labor on 23.9 per cent and the Greens on 22 per cent. One Nation is on 6.8 per cent, others on 5.6 per cent and nine per cent are undecided.
The Nationals primary vote is significantly lower than the 42.4 per cent secured by current MP Thomas George at the 2015 election, in which he nudged out Greens hopeful Adam Guise with a margin of just 0.2 per cent.
On a two-party preferred basis, the poll has Labor leading the Nationals by 57 per cent to 43 per cent, based on preferences stated by the 753 residents surveyed earlier this month.
Mr Buckingham said the National Party was out of touch with the community of Lismore and the Northern Rivers, and wrong on the Adani coal mine issue
‘Lismore Council should be congratulated for considering a ban on contractors that work with the Adani company on their climate destroying coal mine,’ Mr Buckingham said.
‘The Adani mine is a national issue that represents a line in the sand on climate change. It is entirely appropriate for a local council, representing a community that cares about the environment and wants to protect the climate, to take real and meaningful action.
‘Melinda Pavey’s comments show that the National Party is populated by a bunch of out-of-touch dinosaurs that need to be booted out of power.
‘The National Party should be ashamed of their support for the Adani coal mine and the proposal to give $1 billion of taxpayers money to subsidise the railway to take coal from the proposed mine.
Mr Buckingham said the Greens almost won the seat last time and were ready to step up and give Lismore representation in NSW Parliament that actually reflected the community’s values.
‘The National Party got it wrong with their support of coal seam gas and they’re getting it wrong on the Adani coal mine, climate change and renewables. They’re a party stuck in the past.’
In reply, National Party state director Nathan Quigley told Echonetdaily, ‘Mr Buckingham should remember that it was The Nationals who eliminated CSG from the northern rivers. Unlike the Greens, we’re committed to an energy policy that strikes a balance between renewables and cheaper baseload power to lower household energy bills.’
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