By Andrew Brown and Maeve Bannister in Canberra

CLIMATE Change Minister Chris Bowen has used the release of a new United Nations report to push for the urgent passage of the safeguard mechanism.

As negotiations continue in parliament over the future of the mechanism, the UN report warns Australia and other developed countries to achieve net-zero emissions a decade earlier than promised.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says “warp speed” action is needed for further climate action and to limit warming to 1.5C.

The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report says the world has a last chance to make meaningful cuts to emissions.

Mr Bowen said on Tuesday the report was an urgent reminder of the need for climate action, which the safeguard mechanism was part of.

“If passed, our safeguard reforms will come into effect in just 101 days from now, and with only 82 months left before 2030, it is critical that we seize every possible day of the remaining decade to drive down emissions,” he said.

“Ten years of denial and delay has increased the threat of climate change to our health, environment, economy and national security.

“The government is acting rapidly to urgently turn this around.”

The safeguard mechanism would apply to the country’s 215 biggest emitters and aim to reduce emissions by 205 million tonnes by 2030.

The coalition will oppose the safeguard, meaning the government will need the support of the Greens and two other crossbenchers to pass.

A Greens call to stop opening new coal and gas projects has been ruled out by Mr Bowen.

But Greens Leader Adam Bandt says Labor’s vote went backwards at the last election while votes for his party and independents went up because Australians want meaningful action on climate change.

“We still have not heard a convincing explanation from the government about why they want to keep opening up coal and gas lines, we are still in discussions… (and) we will look at all solutions,” he told reporters in Canberra on Tuesday.

Mr Bandt said the Greens understood they would not get everything they wanted, but the government needed to also be flexible on its position.

“We’ve put an offer on the table and, as we were very clear from the beginning, it was an offer and it wasn’t an ultimatum,” he said.

Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie said while the safeguard wasn’t perfect, it was a good starting point.

She called on the Greens to also back the safeguard bill.

“I’m worried that it’s going to fall over and it’ll be the Greens’ fault,” Senator Lambie told ABC Radio.

“You need a starter point… we can keep working on reducing those emissions as we’re going along.

“(The Greens) can continue their fight over coal and gas, but for goodness sake, if that’s what you’re standing on and you don’t get anything through at all, then we’re back to where we started.”

Mr Bowen said voting down the safeguard would eliminate any chance of meaningful action of climate change.

“There is a rapidly closing window for transformative climate action both here and around the world,” he said in a joint statement with Assistant Climate Change Minister Jenny McAllister.

“This report makes it clear – this decade is the critical decade for action. And the parliament has a choice this fortnight to seize that opportunity or to squander it.”

Climate report: the world is in deep trouble