Greens Senator Lidia Thorpe has distanced herself from former boyfriend, bikie boss Dean Martin, saying she played no part in the Rebel motorcycle gang’s decision to push for an ambitious net-zero emissions target that will see the club move to solar powered scooters and vegan leather jackets.
In a statement today, the Rebels said we were ‘living in a climate emergency’ and had to act now because ‘there is no planet B!’
In an extensive list of changes, the gang has committed to phasing out fossil-fuel-powered Harley Davidsons in favour of solar-powered scooters by the end of next year. Leather clothing will be replaced by environmentally friendly alternatives like linen, flax or vegan leather, in an attempt to lessen the reliance on methane-emitting cattle. And all club-houses will need to meet strict 7-star environmental ratings, with a lights-out-after-9pm rule.
Despite the extensive changes, Thorpe says she was unaware of the target and played no part in its formation. “I only dated Dean for a few weeks and so in that time probably only talked to him about the climate challenges our planet faces for about 400-500 hours. So there’s no way I had any influence on this”.
