Coalition to help Labor rush through new nature laws if environmental protections dropped

Opposition leader Sussan Ley says the Coalition will vote to pass Labor’s re-written Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act if it Anthony Albanese’s government agrees to ‘sensible amendments’. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

The Coalition has offered to help Labor rush through new nature laws if it agrees to gut environment protection, challenging Labor to side with business interests over green groups to implement the long-awaited changes.

Environmental lawyers are urging the government against further weakening already flawed laws at the “behest of industry”.