Opening the Labor Party conference, Julia Gillard told her party faithful she wanted the ALP to be the party that says "yes to the future".

Yet the Prime Minister spent the next three days advocating for the resurrection of the old, tired conservative policies of John Howard. On policies covering asylum seekers, uranium and same-sex marriage, Labor's leader backed the stance of the former ultra-conservative Liberal prime minister.

The CSIRO's assessment of the Murray Darling Basin Authority's draft plan backs up what the Australian Greens have been saying all along, by showing water and ecology targets will not be met without greater volumes being allocated to the environment.

"The science was made to fit around the figure of 2,800 GL, which was then cut by another 50 GL in the actual draft plan," Greens' Murray Darling Basin and water spokesperson, Sen. Sarah Hanson-Young, said today.

Audio from Sarah's door stop in Adelaide on the science behind the Murray Darling draft plan and the tabling of a report from an independent inquiry into the Villawood and Christmas Island riots.

What a disappointment. That's what I was thinking upon reading the draft plan released by the Murray Darling Basin Authority yesterday.

The Australian Greens say they are extremely disappointed by the Murray Darling Basin Authority's draft plan which appears to be repeating the mistakes of overlooking the environment's needs, fails to effectively tackle the problems of over-allocation and risks wasting billions of taxpayers' dollars.

The "year of decision and delivery" is quickly coming to an end and the Prime Minister is determined to get the government's mining tax passed through the House of Representative this week before the summer break of Parliament. The Senate would then deal with the legislation when Parliament resumes in 2012.

The "year of decision and delivery" is quickly coming to an end and the Prime Minister is determined to get the government's mining tax passed through the House of Representative this week before the summer break of Parliament. The Senate would then deal with the legislation when Parliament resumes in 2012.

The Australian Greens have backed the Australian Conservation Foundation's suggestion for an independent scientific panel to scrutinise the figures used in the Murray Darling Basin Authority's forthcoming draft plan.

"We are very concerned to learn from news reports that the draft plan will recommend 2,800 gigalitres be allocated to the environment each year," Greens' water and Murray Darling spokesperson, Sen. Sarah Hanson-Young, said today.

Today will be a great day for Australians who have waited years for their government to take our warming planet seriously.

After years of talk and a few backward steps, the Senate will pass a suite of legislation that will put a price on pollution from July next year.

Australians - who in 2007 and 2010 voted for politicians to back widespread community support for taking action - will be able to finally say that most of their elected representatives listened and acted.

Senator HANSON»-«YOUNG» (South Australia) (11:01): It is with great pride that I rise today to commend the Clean Energy Bill 2011 and associated bills to the Senate.