30.5.12 Climate Commission

Mr HAWKE (Mitchell) (13:55): I raise on behalf of constituents in Western Sydney to raise their ongoing concern about climate commissioner Tim Flannery's assault on Western Sydney. The travelling roadshow that is the Climate Commission turned up at Parramatta last week to tell residents of Western Sydney that more people will die under climate change—a direct quote from the commissioner. He said:

We know mortality goes up in heatwaves.

He also said that mental health complaints would rise and severe weather events would, in particular, target residents of Western Sydney. This claim was rubbished by James Cook University Adjunct Professor Bob Carter and environmental scientists, who said, 'So what? There are always going to be more or fewer hot days per decade.'

In the debate on the Clean Energy Finance Corporation this week we heard that Professor Flannery's solution for climate change now centres around using a $2 pair of pliers to remove the teeth of dead people, so I ask: is the Clean Energy Finance Corporation considering funding these $2 pairs of pliers for people across Australia to remove the teeth of dead people? Considering that this man, the climate commissioner, is paid over $300,000 of taxpayers' money to come up with this absolute rubbish and present it as climate change solutions, can this parliament be expected to put up with this kind of nonsense anymore from the climate commissioner, telling people they are going to die and then their teeth should be taken because they might change the climate?