Philip Sutton
Dr READ (Brunswick) (12:47): Today I rise to farewell Philip Sutton, who died aged 71 on 13 June. Philip was an environmental activist for as long as I can remember and with David Spratt co-authored in 2008 the book Climate Code Red: The Case for Emergency Action, which used the phrase ‘climate emergency’ for the first time. This alerted many of us to the urgency of the need for effective climate action. His work led to hundreds of local governments around the world declaring a climate emergency, and the first of these was Darebin, here in Melbourne. It would be a fitting tribute to Philip if this Parliament would also declare a climate emergency. Inspired by Philip Sutton, I and the Greens will continue to promote this idea. My condolences are with his friends and family.