Greens senator Nick McKim has declared his party will work “constructively and co-operatively” with the Labor government in the new parliamentary term. But he also said fresh solutions would be needed to address the “scale of challenges facing the country” if Labor wanted Greens support.
McKim said the Greens would continue to push for legislation to improve climate and housing outcomes for Australians, and he didn’t rule out blocking government proposals in the Senate.
Greens senator Nick McKim. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
“We haven’t been put into the Australian parliament to get out of the prime minister’s way, we’ve been put in there to hold him to account,” McKim told Today.
“We expect him to engage in some of the really meaningful issues, whether it’s climate change, whether it’s protecting nature, whether it’s the housing crisis in Australia … we need to see solutions that are commensurate with the scale of the challenges facing the country.”
The Greens will retain considerable influence in the Senate in the next parliamentary term, beginning on Tuesday, where it’s expected to push the government on several of its key agenda items.
The minor party will be led by senator Larissa Waters, after Adam Bandt lost his seat of Melbourne at the May election.
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