28-May-2009
Portfolio Media Releases, Emissions Trading Scheme
Over the last 48 hours all of the Rudd Government’s claims for their flawed emissions trading legislation to be rushed through Parliament have been severely damaged and the Government has now been left exposed for the political opportunists that they are.
Firstly, the Government’s arguments that legislation must be passed prior to the December meeting on Climate Change in Copenhagen have been shown to be untrue. During this weeks meeting of the World Business Summit on Climate Change in Copenhagen the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Yvo de Boer, revealed that the UN does not require countries to have legislation in place before the Copenhagen meeting.
As the Opposition has been saying the central point needed is for Australia to go to this conference with a united position on targets not a flawed scheme. This point was underlined by the Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Change, Greg Combet, who said on Sky TV yesterday that “Well, the most significant thing in Copenhagen will be the targets that are discussed and hopefully agreed.”
The other argument that the Government has made for the rushed passing off their scheme is to give business “certainty”.
Nothing undermines certainty more than the bullying tactics that have been on display from this Government over the past two days when they have threatened business with the removal of any assistance under an emissions trading scheme and tried to intimidate them into supporting their badly designed model.
The gutter tactics of Mr Combet and the Deputy Prime Minister, Ms Gillard, have been nothing short of disgraceful. It is exactly the sort of behaviour that you would expect from union thugs.
Media Contact: Stuart Eaton, 0433 298 620.