New Teal MP Calls for ‘Urgent’ Climate Action, Pans Lack of Progress

Nicolette Boele won the north Sydney seat of Bradfield by a mere 26 votes.

Independent "teal" member for Bradfield Nicolette Boele—backed by the Climate 200 group—makes her first speech in the House of Representatives at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia on July 28, 2025. AAP Image/Mick Tsikas

In a her maiden speech to Parliament, Independent MP for Bradfield, Nicolette Boele, said she would use her platform to push both major parties to take “urgent and meaningful” action on climate change.

“I will work tirelessly until the people in this place make laws to reverse biodiversity collapse and commence in earnest to repair country, from our woodlands and wetlands to our old growth forests and our kelp ones,” she said.

She called for the kind of reform last seen during the Howard and Whitlam eras, arguing that the current Parliament had failed to deliver on systemic issues, unlike when “John Howard restricted guns and Gough Whitlam gave us Medicare.”

“Today the Parliament does not make these courageous decisions,” she said.

“Instead, difficult decisions are delayed until the failure to act ushers in disastrous consequences—at which point a royal commission is called for, a referendum sought or a plebiscite scheduled.”

Climate Action Stalled by Government

Drawing on three decades of experience in finance and energy, Boele said she had worked to accelerate climate action through business and investment but faced constant resistance from government.

“I came to understand the potential for business to do good, but my efforts to shift the dial to speed up the progress of climate action through business met obstacle after obstacle,” she said.

“But not from business, not from customers, not from NGOs—from government.”

She claimed inaction had left Australia trailing “decade after long, infuriating decade.”

“Government must pass the bold reforms Australia needs,” she added, noting that previous efforts like the Howard emissions trading scheme and the Rudd-Gillard carbon pollution reduction plan were ultimately “quashed because of political inconvenience and culture wars.”

Democracy Needs Reform

Boele also warned of the declining trust in democratic institutions, arguing that Parliament must become more people-centred and less party-focused.

“Trust in our democratic institutions is declining,” she said. “Independents like me have been elected to put people back into the process of creating our future. This is how we fix things.”

Boele also said the electorate of Bradfield—led by five male Liberal MPs for over 70 years—is evolving (and has chosen an independent woman).

The chamber responded to her speech with applause, including from fellow Teal independents and members of the Labor frontbench such as Tony Burke and Catherine King.