Leader of the Australia Greens, Senator Christine Milne, delivered a keynote speech to the Greens National Conference in Sydney, and addressed the press at a press conference afterwards.

Senator Larissa Waters also delivered a speech at the National Conference outlining the Federal Greens' Too Precious to Lose' campaign, to protect our precious natural environments under threat from weakening environmental laws and damaging developments.

Please see attached audio files and transcript of keynote speech below.

Senator Christine Milne and Adam Bandt discussed the Senate Committee report into electricity pricing, Greens motions in both houses on Newstart, and Greens' successful negotiations on pokies and wheat, and other issues of the day.

Christine Milne held a press conference to respond to the Prime Minister's statement on Afghanistan. The Senator also responded to other issues of the day, notably the Government's treatment of asylum seekers and Joel Fitzgibbon's call to reduce the Renewable Energy Target.

Transcript

Subjects: Afghanistan, asylum seekers, human rights, Sri Lanka, Joel Fitzgibbon, RET, ACT elections, Newspoll

Christine Milne and Richard Di Natale addressed the press to discuss the unwanted surplus, the government's plans to excise the Australian mainland from the migration zone, superbugs and alcohol taxation.

Transcript

Subjects: Asylum seekers, Nauru, superbugs, alcohol tax reform.

Senator Christine Milne met with NSW Greens MP Jamie Parker and Greens candidate for the seat of Sydney, Chris Harris.

Transcript

Subjects: Climate Change Authority report on the RET, Christiana Figueres and the Kyoto Protocol, Sydney election, Barangaroo casino, Nauru, Murray Darling

Christine Milne and Adam Bandt held a press conference to respond to the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook and responded to other issues of the day

Transcript

Subjects: Afghanistan, MYEFO, ACT elections

Christine Milne and Adam Bandt addressed the press to discuss proposed ammendments to the EU carbon price linkage legislation and contracts for closures, as well as a motion before Parliament to protect whistleblowers. They responded to other questions of the day.

Transcript

Subjects: ICAC, whistleblowers, contracts for closure, PBO, Parliamentary integrity, Newstart, single parents, carbon price linkage with the European scheme, CFMEU function

Labor and the Coalition today voted down a Greens motion calling on the Government to reveal progress towards long-promised legislation to protect whistleblowers.

The Greens understand that draft legislation, promised since the 2007 election, has been criticised as so weak as to be ineffective and believe that it is in the public interest that the draft and commentary be made publicly available.

The Gillard Government's focus on a statement by the IMF today is in stark contrast to its silence on the ABS's alternative Measures of Australian Progress dashboard released today.

"Only when we start paying as much attention to how well we educate our children, how healthy we are, how happy we are and how clean our environment is as to our GDP numbers will we have an economy that serves people and nature, not the other way around," Australian Greens Leader, Senator Christine Milne said today.

Christine Milne addressed the press in Hobart to respond to the announcement by Gunns that it has entered administration, and responded to questions on other issues of the day.

Transcript

Subjects: Gunns, Tasmanian economy, Chinese investment, Australian Conservation Foundation and the Wilderness society, Tony Abbott's defence policy