Overview

• Ken Henry described Australia’s environmental policymaking as “policy paralysis” and urged urgent action on the 2020 Graeme Samuel review this week
• He renewed calls for an independent federal Environment Protection Authority and binding national environmental standards to overhaul the outdated EPBC Act Despite Environment Minister Murray Watt’s June stakeholder summit and years of consultations, no formal legislative package has been introduced
• Henry warned that accelerating ecosystem decline, including a toxic algae bloom in South Australia, threatens biodiversity and long-term economic performance
• He argued that robust national environmental laws are key to boosting productivity, expediting housing and infrastructure approvals, and meeting net-zero targets