“In the last term of Government, the Australian Labor Party promised no new extinctions for Australia”, said Simon Copland, Conservation Council Executive Director. “This is a bold promise, yet one that has yet to be followed through yet with real action.”
“The new Environment Minister, Murray Watt, could live up to that promise today, by cancelling the Northern Airport Road, which will destroy the vital habitat of the Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon, as his first act in the role. Doing so would show that the re-elected Government is serious about taking action on protecting our environment.”
The Conservervation Council has also called on the Government to move fast to fix Australia’s broken environmental laws.
“The Albanese government went to the 2022 election promising thorough reform of our environmental laws. They however delayed these plans time and time again. It is time to get on with it.”
“Murray Watt is known as a fixer. It is not time to fix this political and policy mess – no more delays, no more caving to big business. The Government must get on with fixing our laws in the first year of this term of Parliament.”
The Conservation Council ACT Region and Friends of Grasslands have written to Minister Watt today with their request to cancel the approval of the northern airport road, alongside other measures to protect Canberra’s dragon.