Gillard under fire as protest against green tax mounts

More than 2,000 protesters gathered outside Australia's Parliament House yesterday to demonstrate against plans for an unpopular anti-pollution tax that many Australians believe will raise the cost of living.

The Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, is set to pass the legislation, which will tax the country's biggest carbon gas-emitting businesses, with the support of independent MPs and the environmentally focused Greens party.

Protesters complain that the tax will drive up the cost of producing energy and make everything else more expensive. They also point to the fact that Ms Gillard had promised not to introduce a carbon tax when her centre-left Labor Party was narrowly re-elected last year. Some called for a new election.

The opposition called on Ms Gillard to apologise to Parliament for winning the last election on a falsehood. But Ms Gillard insisted that the tax deal was the best option for Australia's future.