- The Guardian
- Issue #2195
In response to Environment Minister Chris Bowen’s opening address at the Bonn Climate Change Conference, also called SB64, Shiva Gounden, Head of Pacific at Greenpeace Australia Pacific cut to the chase:
“While Australia’s speech was strongly focused on the limitations of fossil fuels and supply chains amid the current energy shock, what’s still lacking is the vision and agenda for COP31 that will truly deliver the transition away from fossil fuels. Until then, it remains rhetoric without any results. Minister Bowen emphasised the electrification agenda and renewable energies, but in a challenging geopolitical environment more clearly needs to be done to ensure COP31 is a moment of true implementation.
“Every successful COP has depended on a strong Presidency and Bonn is a key moment for the incoming Presidency to start shaping the vision. What Australia must also do is support Pacific climate leadership and get squarely behind the longstanding Pacific priorities of limiting warming to 1.5°C – and that requires rapidly phasing out fossil fuels, building resilience to the escalating impacts of climate change, addressing loss and damage, and ensuring communities can access the funding and support they need.”
Greenpeace International has produced a policy briefing outlining the core elements of a just transition from fossil fuels and the urgent, priority actions needed from national governments and through global co-operation to make it a reality.
In WA, the United Workers Union has welcomed the Public Sector Commission’s decision that from 1 July visa holders in the WA public sector will be able to hold permanent employment. More than a thousand staff members can now live with job certainty.
The decision aligns the WA Public Sector rules with private sector standards which cover most WA workers. It comes after sustained advocacy from members to call for reform in public sector employment practices.
Previously in WA, visa holders weren’t allowed to hold permanent jobs in the public sector, even if they’d worked there for years doing the same work as their permanent colleagues.
Permanency means access to the entitlements their colleagues already have, like paid leave and guaranteed hours, and protection from having a contract simply not renewed.
PARASITE OF THE WEEK: Queensland’s Crisafulli government. Queensland Mine safety experts from across the state’s coal industry gathered in Rockhampton last week for the 2026 Site Safety and Health Representative (SSHR) Conference. The annual conference brings together worker representatives, industry inspectors and safety professionals to develop their skills and collaborate on stronger safety standards across the Queensland mining industry.
Hosted by the Mining and Energy Union Queensland District, the conference provides practical training and discussions on key safety issues including mine inspections, serious incident investigations, fatigue management and worker health monitoring.
The conference also discussed growing concerns about Queensland’s resources safety framework under the Crisafulli government, with an eye to resisting any watering down of mine safety legislation.
Mining and Energy Union Queensland District President Mitch Hughes said the conference plays a vital role protecting Queensland mineworkers at a time when the state government has surrendered the issue:
“Our SSHRs are the front line of Queensland’s strong mine safety standards. By bringing them together to share knowledge, discuss emerging challenges and explore ways to improve safety outcomes for workers, we’re empowering them to stand up and speak out on site.
“Queensland miners are increasingly concerned about the future independence of mine safety oversight under the Crisafulli government. This conference is a reminder that mine safety cannot be taken for granted.
“Every protection, every safety law has been a lesson inked in blood, through injuries and the loss of life across our industry.
“If we don’t stand firm now to uphold our standards, we will have to re-learn these lessons in the future.”
