Hobart City Council's plan to reduce speed limits to 50km/h within its municipal boundaries should be congratulated, and it is a perfect cue for all tiers of government to step up their efforts in saving lives on our roads, says Greens Acting Leader, Christine Milne.

"This is a very positive step towards creating healthier and safer city spaces. Slowing down traffic in Hobart will no doubt slow the rate of accidents, but with 64 needless road deaths in Tasmania last year, we clearly need something more.

North East Tasmania will get a jobs boost and an injection of $769,000 as a result of the Greens and the Federal government working together to deliver for the community, says Greens Deputy Leader, Christine Milne.

"Greens in balance of power deliver outcomes for communities and especially those communities hit the hardest by unemployment."

The project is part of a $17.5 million package bringing 587 jobs, 304 work experience positions and 150 traineeships and apprenticeships jobs to most Australian states, including Tasmania.

A Greens motion to address the looming crisis in the Australian building industry has been rejected in the Senate.

Australian Greens Deputy Leader, Senator Christine Milne said that the government and the opposition are on notice that their failure to address the mess in the building industry created by mandatory home builders warranty insurance will result in builders either going broke or building illegally by the middle of the year.

The Australian Greens will move in the Senate to ban the use of triazines until the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) can demonstrate that they are safe to use.

The consistent failure of successive Tasmanian governments over 20 years to deal with the human health and environmental impacts of triazine contamination means it is time for the federal government to step in and require the Tasmanian government to conduct rigorous analysis to determine water quality in every catchment.

The Government and Opposition today voted against a Greens motion calling on the Government to plan for peak oil in the light of the most recent global figures showing that a shift from oil power to coal power is increasing global greenhouse emissions.

"The global financial crisis drove manufacturing from the developed world into the developing world, thereby replacing oil with coal and increasing greenhouse emissions," Australian Greens Deputy Leader, Senator Christine Milne said.

Senator MILNE (Tasmania) (10.15 am)-I move:
That the following matters be referred to the Economics References Committee for inquiry and report by 31 March 2010:
(a) a reconsideration of the committee's findings in relation to Australia's Mandatory Last Resort Home Warranty Insurance Scheme, in light of:
(i) the 2008 Federal Ombudsman's report that demonstrated that last resort home warranty insurance is the worst performing insurance in the nation,

25-30% of Australian builders may not be able to build legally by the end of this year and be forced to either build illegally or go out of business because of the failure of Australian governments to deal with the 'junk' mandatory home builders' warranty insurance.

Australian Greens Deputy Leader, Senator Christine Milne, today sought to re-open the Senate Inquiry she established last year into the 'junk' insurance scheme due to significant developments in the issue and the critical time-frame to rescue Australian builders.