Greens MP and industry spokesperson says the government cannot continue to prop up the failing car industry without commitments from the industry to move to electric vehicles.

Mr Bandt says the Greens support assistance but future co-investment in the auto industry needs to set goals and milestones on electric car development by the industry.

He also offered to work with the government to secure car industry assistance and put it beyond the reach of Tony Abbott, if the government is prepared to secure a future for electric vehicles.

Greens MP and science and research spokesperson Adam Bandt says the low growth in maths and science enrolments show government policy is failing. Mr Bandt repeated Greens calls for budget cuts to school science funding to be reversed and university fee discounts for maths and science students to be restored.

The Unhealthy Science? University Natural and Physical Sciences 2002-2009/10 released by the Chief Scientist Professor Ian Chubb yesterday shows the growth in maths and science enrolments falling behind most other areas of education.

Mr BANDT (Melbourne) (09:45): Nothing is more important to the future of our society and our economy than the state of our schools and our education system. I am a passionate supporter of every child's right to access a high-quality public education and I want to see our country do better at providing parents a real choice.

Greens MP and science spokesperson Adam Bandt says the CSIRO should
not be a member of the logging industry's peak body, Australian Forest
Products Association (AFPA).

Mr Bandt says the CSIRO needs to remain independent and Minister Evans
needs to make that clear to the CSIRO.

The ABC's AM program revealed this morning that the CSIRO had paid
$10,000 to become a member of AFPA and that the AFPA had intervened
strongly in political debate, including lobbying against climate
change legislation.

Greens MP and spokesperson for innovation, industry, science and research Adam Bandt has criticised the government's announcement of a near doubling in HECS fees for maths and science students in today's mid-year mini budget.

"Almost doubling university HECS fees for maths and science students is economic stupidity. How can science and maths be a national priority two years ago and now not be?," Mr Bandt said.

Greens MP and industry spokesperson Adam Bandt has welcomed the passage of the Steel Transformation Plan Bill, but is disappointed Labor failed to back a Senate amendment to support the creation of clean energy jobs in the Illawarra and other regions.

The amendment would have required allocations of the $180 million for Bluescope steel to take into account the joint union-business Green Jobs Illawarra Action Plan.

"This package will help protect jobs and assist in a transition to a cleaner economy," Mr Bandt said.

Australian Greens Leader Bob Brown, Senator for Queensland Larissa Waters, Senators for Western Australia Rachel Siewert and Scott Ludlam, and Member for Melbourne Adam Bandt spoke to the media about the Australian Greens National Conference in Fremantle, WA.

Topics included the allocation of preferences, the environmental threats posed by developments in the Kimberley, and the Nationals' call for a "discussion paper" on coal seam gas. 

Greens MP and spokesperson on Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Adam Bandt has congratulated two Melbourne based scientists who have been jointly awarded the the $300,000 Prime Minister's Prize for Science.

Professors Ezio Rizzardo (CSIRO) and David Solomon (University of Melbourne) developed new chemical theories that have had a big impact on the production of polymers, particularly in plastics.

"I want to congratulate two of Melbourne's great scientific pioneers," Mr Bandt said.

Greens MP and science spokesperson Adam Bandt has congratulated Australia's latest Nobel laureate, Professor Brian Schmidt.

"This is a well deserved award for Professor Schmidt and a fantastic win for Australian scientific research", Mr Bandt said today.

"It reinforces the importance of government support for science funding particularly for basic research."

The Australian Greens want the Federal Government to adopt a target of 3% of GDP for R&D funding lifting Australia into line with other leading OECD economies.