Mr Bandt, the Greens spokesperson for energy and climate change will be joined by NSW MLC Jeremy Buckingham, the Greens spokesperson for resources and energy.

Mr Bandt said the transition to clean energy had begun and would continue to accelerate in Australia and around the world.

“The transition to clean energy is inevitable, but we need a national plan that ensures the transition helps fight global warming and works for communities and workers in the areas that have relied on jobs in coal-fired power, like Lake Macquarie,” Mr Bandt said.

Australia was in the middle of a national conversation about this transition and its impact on people and the planet, he said.

The Greens recognised that more work needed to be done to protect people that will be affected by this transition.

Mr Bandt said he was travelling to coal communities around Australia that will be affected by the transition, to listen to their concerns and to discuss the Greens’ vision “for an energy transition that doesn’t leave anyone behind”.

“Without a coherent national plan, Australia’s energy future will be dictated by private companies in boardrooms – like what we’ve seen with Hazelwood’s unplanned closure in Victoria,” he said.

“What communities need is certainty and leadership from their government, not frenzied scrambling at the last minute.

“The most important reason we are visiting Lake Macquarie is to listen to what people in the region have to say about the transition.

“Together, we can learn from Hazelwood so that by the time the next power station retires, we've got secure jobs and industries for workers to move into.”

Mr Buckingham said the Q&A sessions were helping the Greens to develop transition policies.

Mr Bandt and Mr Buckingham will discuss these issues in a Q&A session at Pippi’s at the Point, in Speers Point, on Wednesday, August 2, from 6.30pm to 8pm.