Senator Matt Canavan has called on Greens MPs to hand in their smart phones.

“It’s the height of hypocrisy for Greens Members of Parliament to steadfastly oppose mining in Australia but continue to use technology that can’t exist without mining products,” Senator Canavan said today.

“For example, smart phones contain copper, gold, silver, indium tin oxide, silica, cobalt, carbon, aluminium, nickel and magnesium, all mined in Australia, and in fact require a total of 40 mined metals and minerals.

“And Greens MPs better hand in their laptops too, because they have plastic cases made from coal.”

Senator Canavan has successfully moved a motion in the Senate noting that the Australian mining industry generates $138 billion per annum in exports to Australia’s economy, that every smart phone depends on mining, and that opposition to Australia’s mining industry would restrict the supply of these mineral resources and opponents should therefore refrain from using these smart phones and tablets.

“The Greens might be happy with reverting to something like the fourth millennium BC Sumerian cuneiform writing on clay tablets – though that would still require mining of clay. Would they be alright with that?”