Penny Wong - rank hypocrisy

As talk of a possible filibuster emerges in order to sink the ETS, Penny Wong ignores the blatant hypocrisy of her government's position in trying to push through the ETS before Copenhagen, and cries foul on the Opposition for playing tricks:

The Opposition's Leader in the Senate, Nick Minchin, is now warning the Government that it might not get a vote this year.

"The Government knows it's taking a risk in bringing such significant legislation back into the Parliament in November and that's on the Government's head," Senator Minchin said.

"We believe it's arrogant and cynical of the Government even to be using the last two weeks of sitting of this year's Parliament to seek to debate its emissions trading scheme. We don't think it should be debated until February.

"We're not saying we're going in there to delay debate, but our responsibility as legislators in the Senate is to vigorously subject this legislation to significant cross examination."

Delaying a vote in the Senate until next year would appease many disgruntled Liberal Party members who do not want any action until after the climate change meeting in Copenhagen in December, and it will frustrate the Government.

Climate Change Minister Penny Wong says it is too important an issue to play "tricky procedural games with".

"Mr Turnbull has said to the Government he wants to negotiate in good faith. Well, there are too many members of the Liberal Party who appear to be scheming to prevent this from happening," Senator Wong said.

"It's time the Liberal Party stopped doing anything they can to avoid action on climate change and are prepared to actually have the discussion and the debate with the Government in the Parliament."

"Negotiate in good faith", in the mind of the Wong-bot's central processing unit, means agreeing with everything I say.

Read it here.