22-July-2011
Portfolio Media Releases, Environment, The Economy
Interview with Marius Benson ABC News Radio
Friday 22 July 2011
CLICK HERE TO PLAY THE INTERVIEW
Topics: emissions trading scheme property rights, carbon capture and storage.
E&OE………………………………………………………………………………………
MARIUS BENSON:
Andrew Robb you say there may be difficulties in unwinding a carbon tax because you say it creates a property right which may be hard to challenge.
ANDREW ROBB:
Yes, my point is in the modelling the Treasury have done they have assumed that all of our competitors will at the same time introduce a carbon tax or an emissions trading scheme in the same way Australia is proposed to introduce it.
Of course, that is patently wrong. It will be a highly costly and damaging scheme to have in place if we go it alone. Now in that case there will be a property right there will be millions of people trading it, holding it. It will be in super funds and we will face a situation as a country that it will be extraordinarily costly to dismantle such an albatross and there will be a need for massive compensation to wind such a scheme up.
It just shows the folly of again going ahead of the rest of the world, going alone when we are not sure which way the rest of the world will tackle this issue.
MARIUS BENSON:
When you say extremely costly, do you have a figure in mind or at least an order of magnitude?
ANDREW ROBB:
We are talking tens of billions of dollars for either side of politics in the future to wind this scheme up.
MARIUS BENSON:
So, can I just clarify, Tony Abbott has said that he will wind the scheme up if elected, will it go ahead despite that cost?
ANDREW ROBB:
No, if we are elected at the next election it won’t have by that stage become an emissions trading scheme, it will still just be a tax and at that stage it will not be a property right and it will be not costly to wind it up.
MARIUS BENSON:
Can I ask you about some remarks by Malcolm Turnbull last night who says a war is being waged on scientists by people who are fighting climate change action for narrow vested interest, narrow financial interests.
ANDREW ROBB:
Well that is an observation or a commentary by Malcolm I don’t necessarily have a strong view on what’s ….
MARIUS BENSON:
Is he right?
ANDREW ROBB:
Well I don’t know there are people with certainly, many people with different views.
ANDREW ROBB:
What about the idea of comparing the lobbyists who are fighting the carbon tax as Malcolm Turnbull has to the cigarette companies who fought action to curtail smoking?
ANDREW ROBB:
I didn’t hear the speech, but from what I’ve read Malcolm was making the very valid point that it is not sensible to withdraw funding from carbon capture and storage.
I think he might have made the point that because coal is such a cheap source of energy that China and India will be using it for many, many, many decades to come and though I think the rest of the world will be using it as well for that matter.
Therefore it is stupidity really for the Australian government led by the Greens to bring in a $10 billion slush fund as is proposed under their new package which will exclude any expense on carbon capture and storage.
MARIUS BENSON:
Andrew Robb, thank you very much.
Media Contact: Cameron Hill on 0408 239 521.