Greens Leader Bob Brown says childhood obesity, raising the aged pension, stronger workplace rights and ending logging as a first step to tackling climate change are priorities for the Greens in the new Parliament.
At today's declaration of the Senate election in Hobart, Senator Brown said the Greens' Senate vote had soared from 917,000 in 2004 to 1,100,000 in 2007. The party won official party status and will have five Senate seats from July 1, 2007.
"Rudd Labor will be conservative socially, fiscally and ecologically," Senator Brown said.

Australia should establish a World Bushfire Centre for research and management of the worsening bushfire danger due to climate change, Greens Leader Bob Brown said in Hobart today.
 
Senator Brown said a permanent, expert centre could co-ordinate research and assist in the prevention and management of bushfires in Australia and around the world. 
 

Greens Leader Senator Bob Brown has labelled the tax cuts and spending programs of the Coalition and the ALP as inflationary.
 
"Both John Howard and Kevin Rudd are spending to win the election, not to secure the nation's future," Senator Brown said.
 
"If you inject money in the form of tax cuts into an overheated economy you get inflationary pressure. It is far better to put that money into infrastructure and services such as health, education and public transport instead of tax cuts."
 

Greens Leader Bob Brown was at Sydney University today to launch the Greens Higher Education Policy for Election 07.
"The Greens policy recognises the urgent need to boost public investment in public universities, to support students and assist researchers to equip Australia to thrive in the 21st Century," Senator Brown said.

 
 
 Greens call for junk food ad ban. 
  
"Prime Minister Howard's new ad-free digital ABC TV option for children will leave most kids splattered by junk-food ads," Greens Leader Bob Brown said today.
 
"The new ad-free channel is a good idea, but it is no antidote to the fact that most kids will still be watching the commercials."
 

Greens Leader Bob Brown today renewed calls for the Prime Minister to ban junk food advertising during children's TV viewing hours as part of the fight against childhood obesity.
 
"What's inside the fridge won't change because there's a fridge magnet on the door," Senator Brown said.
 
"It's pretty useless sending out one fridge magnet on healthy eating to every school child if they continue to get bombarded with hundreds of millions of dollars in advertising promoting junk food on television," Senator Brown said.
 

The National Council on Drugs' much greater experience with Australian drug problems is in stark contrast to the extremist position taken by Bronwyn Bishop's committee majority in its report released yesterday, Greens leader Bob Brown said today.
"Less than a fortnight ago the experts on drug use, the Australian National Drugs Council, called for increased funding for treatment and diversion programs for drug users to build on the demonstrable success of harm-minimisation approaches," Senator Brown said.

The Greens say the Prime Minister's omission of major centres such as Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine, and Elliott from his alcohol ban plans fails long-time Aboriginal calls to block the biggest sales outlets and deal with the major centres of child sexual abuse.
 

Greens Leader Bob Brown says that Archbishop Pell's proposal to demand that school principals give an oath to narrow doctrinal principles threatens to rekindle the debate on state aid.
"He is moving to stifle rather than encourage debate in the Catholic school system. Fortunately, other bishops are not coming out in support of George Pell. That is because his move is so inflammatory," Senator Brown said.