Businessman and environmentalist Geoff Cousins says Opposition Leader Bill Shorten told him that if Labor wins government it could revoke the Adani mine licence.

Mr Cousins, former president of the Australian Conservation Foundation, told 7.30 that Mr Shorten made the statement to him privately last month.

"The key statement was that, 'When we are in government, if the evidence is as compelling as we presently believe it to be regarding the approval of the Adani mine, we will revoke the licence, as allowed in the act. That's a clear policy'," Mr Cousins said.

"He told me he intended to speak to his colleagues."

He said the conversation took place when Mr Shorten asked him for advice about the environmental impact of the Adani mine in Queensland's Galilee Basin.

The Adani mine has become a headache for the Labor Party. ( ABC News )

Mr Cousins said he spent two days in north Queensland with Mr Shorten — at the Labor leader's request — to discuss the matter.

"He said he wanted to learn as much as he could first hand about the mine and the impacts on the reef and climate change issues and so on," Mr Cousins said.

"He said the reason he wanted to get that first-hand knowledge was because he was planning a firmer policy position on Adani."

According to Mr Cousins, at the end of the two days Mr Shorten told him he would discuss the policy with his colleagues.

Mr Cousins said he was speaking out publicly to "increase the pressure" on Labor to make a decision.

"It's pretty clear there is some kind of resistance in his party to him leading on this issue," he said.

Mr Shorten 'deeply sceptical' of mine

Bill Shorten appreciated Geoff Cousins' time and effort during their meeting, a spokesperson said. ( AAP: Andrew Taylor )

A spokesperson for Mr Shorten confirmed the Opposition Leader requested a meeting with the Australian Conservation Foundation and Mr Cousins for their views on the Adani mine.

"Bill really appreciated the time and effort they gave informing him of all the environmental issues," the spokesperson told 7.30.

"The visit renewed Bill's convictions on the importance of protecting the reef and the environment.

"It's no secret that Bill is deeply sceptical of the proposed Adani coal mine. He believes if it cannot stack up environmentally or commercially, it should not go ahead. So far it hasn't, and he doesn't believe it will."

But they said: "Labor does not rip up contracts and we don't create sovereign risk."

The Adani mine has been a major headache for Mr Shorten and the Labor Party.

In rural Queensland the party faces a very real electoral threat from One Nation and wants to be seen as offering jobs and economic growth.

But at the same time it is trying to appeal to voters in the inner-Melbourne electorate of Batman, which could fall to the Greens in a by-election in just over a fortnight.