PARIS RATIFICATION, BUT NO POLICY

Media Release.

Mark Butler M.P.

Shadow Minister for Climate Change and Energy

Date:  10 November 2016

Labor welcomes the ratification of the Paris Agreements but we know the Turnbull Government does not have the policies in place to meet the commitments it has made under the Paris Agreement.

Many independent reports have stressed the Government’s policies fall well short of reaching their Paris targets, which themselves fall short of the emissions cuts needed to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. For example, Bloomberg New Energy Finance has recently reported:

“Australia’s current climate policy framework is insufficient to meet the current targets, let alone deeper commitments”.

And Climate Action Tracker, which provides analysis for the UN has stated:

“Australia’s emissions are set to substantially increase to more than 21% above 2005 levels by 2030, equivalent to an increase of around 52% above 1990 levels.

“Australia’s current policies will fall well short of meeting its proposed Paris Agreement target of an emissions reduction of (including LULUCF) 26–28% below 2005 levels by 2030”.

These reports are supported by the Government’s own emission projections, which show emissions growing to 2020 by 3 per cent above 2000 levels, not falling by 5 per cent as the Government has promised.

The Turnbull Government also refuses to introduce policy to support renewable energy investment post 2020, which is crucial if we are to meet our Paris obligations.

And as the ACTU reported this week, the Government does not have a plan for a Just Transition to a clean energy economy, as the Paris Agreement requires.

Without the policies to back it up his Paris commitments, the Australian people and the international community know the Prime Minister is nothing more than a puppet whose strings are being pulled by extreme right-wing members of his party.

Extreme members like Craig Kelly, who chairs the Liberal Environment and Energy Committee and earlier this morning rejoiced on his Facebook page; “Paris is cactus”.

The only way Prime Minister Turnbull can assure the people of Australia that his government is serious about tackling climate change is by backing up his promises with real policies. 

Back