The Australian Greens, with the support of the Liberals, have today amended Labor's Nation Building Bills to ensure that the multi-billion dollar funds are properly scrutinised.

The amendments, moved by Senator Milne:
• establish a new Parliamentary Joint Committee on Nation Building to oversee the Minister's allocations from the funds; and
• require all advice from the advisory boards to be made public immediately.

"Forward-thinking, transparent infrastructure planning can replace Australia's history of pork-barrelling and white elephants with a Green New Deal to build a zero emissions economy," Senator Milne said.

"With such tremendous sums of money being spent through these funds, it is vital that there be appropriate scrutiny of how it is allocated, and I am particularly pleased that we have been able to work so positively with the Opposition to amend the legislation to increase transparency.

"A Joint Parliamentary Committee would play a vital role in overseeing expenditure. Where more than $50 million will be spent, the Parliament will have the opportunity to scrutinise it.

"It is extremely important that all the advice to the Minister from the advisory boards be tabled and made public immediately. We cannot allow a situation where Ministers may make multi-billion dollar decisions without the public being able to test them against the evidence."

Senator Milne also moved separate amendments to:
• insert principles into the Bills that would require projects financed by the funds to address climate change and peak oil, amongst other objectives; and
• require the Board of Infrastructure Australia to include at least two people with expertise in climate change or peak oil.

"Bad infrastructure planning will lock us into our high-polluting, oil- and coal-dependent economy for decades longer. If the Government continues to focus infrastructure spending on roads and coal ports, it will become far more difficult and expensive, if not impossible, for Australia to reduce our emissions and prepare for peak oil.

"It would be a terrible irony if we raid the future fund to pay for investments which don't future-proof Australia.

"If the Government is serious about climate change, reducing emissions must be front and centre in its infrastructure and nation-building plans. These amendments would have gone a long way to putting it there and I am disappointed that the Government and Opposition did not support them."