Not only is Steve Fielding an Australian Senator, he’s one of the Senators who controls the balance of power in the Australian Senate. The government realistically can’t pass a law concerning ‘climate change’ unless he agrees with them.
Unfortunately, Malcolm Turnbull (the leader of the opposition in Australia) also supports emissions legislation. He just wants to put off passing it until after the Copenhagen meeting. Also, the opposition has some sensible members who have already stated that they would not support it in any circumstances. However, if just a few of them did so, the legislation would pass so we’re not out of the woods yet.