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The Green Party has fired its first shots of election year, criticising Labour's record on climate change and appealing to voters to look closely at whether Beehive rhetoric is being matched by action.
Co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons used the party's annual state of the planet address on Waiheke Island yesterday to make it clear the Greens do not want to be viewed as an add-on to Labour or any other party.
Instead, the Greens are positioning themselves as an independent voice that can be trusted on climate change issues.
Ms Fitzsimons said there had been a lot of rhetoric about carbon neutrality and sustainability, and this was the year that had to be turned into action.
"A strong presence for the Greens in Parliament is the only realistic leverage that voters can exert over any government," she said. "Only the Greens can ensure that we do move beyond the current stage of greenwash and rhetoric - and into the realm of realistic and effective action."
The Greens have a co-operation agreement with Labour in which the party abstains on crucial votes of confidence and supply.
It has not voted for any government on confidence and supply since 2002.
Ms Fitzsimons said the Greens voted for legislation according to its merits, and argued the party had been able to achieve a number of things from the position of not being in coalition with Labour.
Among them she listed an energy efficiency and conservation strategy, legislation now before the House to minimise waste, and the Buy Kiwi Made campaign.
Taking a similar role after the next election was "certainly a possibility".
"We will, however, be asking a high price for our co-operation," she said.
Faster action on climate change appears likely to be near the top of the Greens' list should they win enough voter support to stay in Parliament and enter into post-election talks this year.
Ms Fitzsimons expressed concern about the Government's emissions trading scheme, because it will not be in force totally until 2013 - with the taxpayer subsidising dairy farmers for five years.
She also listed instances of what she saw as Government inaction - particularly in the area of water pollution - and pointed to a series of acronyms that had sprung up over the past 20 years as bureaucrats tried to promote sustainability with little effect.
"The pile of acronyms has risen faster than the price of oil," Ms Fitzsimons said.
But Climate Change Minister David Parker defended the Government's record and argued Labour had shown leadership on the issues of climate change and sustainability.
"It's quite wrong to say the Government is not taking action on climate change and sustainability," Mr Parker said.
He said the emissions trading scheme coming into effect this year would be "world leading", and he listed initiatives in the areas of biofuels, a 10-year moratorium on new thermal baseload power plants, and a revamped Building Code as evidence.
Asked later if her talk of rhetoric in the climate change area was directed as much at National as it was at Labour, Ms Fitzsimons joked that National "hasn't even got any rhetoric yet".
"Labour's got the rhetoric, good - but what are they going to do about it?"
Ms Fitzsimons said the Greens did not have a set position on whether the party could potentially work with National.
She said the Greens had shown in recent years they could work with any party on an issue-by-issue basis, and would form relationships that "bring us closer to our ideals for the country".
"But we don't have a position yet on what that might involve. How can you have? Our position is that we're there to promote our policies, and to work with people who are close to them - National hasn't announced anything."
