Abbott's climate policy 'racist'

23 Aug 2011, 5:29 pm   -   Source: AAP
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Combet: climate change strategy is 'racist' (AAP)

Combet: climate change strategy is 'racist' (AAP)

The Government has called the opposition's climate change strategy 'racist' because it doesn't allow businesses to buy international pollution permits to offset their domestic emissions.

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The federal government has compared the opposition's climate change strategy to the 'White Australia' policy because it doesn't allow businesses to buy international pollution permits to offset their domestic emissions.

Polluters will be able to purchase overseas abatement under Labor's emissions trading scheme (ETS), but the coalition's "direct action" policy focuses instead on storing carbon in Australia's vegetation and soil.

"The opposition's prohibition on trading carbon permits with other countries is economic xenophobia," Climate Change Minister Greg Combet told the National Press Club on Tuesday.

"It sends the signal that it's somehow dubious to trade with foreigners."

Mr Combet said Opposition Leader Tony Abbott was engaging in dog-whistle politics and trashing a formerly bipartisan commitment to economic liberalisation and open trade.

"It is in effect a 'white carbon policy', designed to harvest some more votes, no matter what the cost," he said.

The Gillard government argues an internationally-linked ETS is essential so that pollution can be cut at the lowest cost wherever it can be achieved.

If permits couldn't be purchased overseas, the proposed carbon price of $23 a tonne would have to double, Mr Combet said on Tuesday.

In a further attack on the opposition, he said the public debate over pricing carbon had featured some of the "most absurd, inane, puerile and self-serving tripe" that he could remember.

Mr Abbott's contribution had been to "engender fear, to dumb down politics and to frighten people with deceit, misrepresentation and distortion".

Labor wants a carbon tax up and running by mid-2012. It will then convert it into an ETS with a floating price three years later, in mid-2015.

The government plans to push its package through parliament by Christmas.

Mr Combet said on Tuesday the government appreciated stakeholder feedback on its draft legislation, but the policy wouldn't be altered.

"We'll take all of the comments very seriously," the Climate Change Minister said.

"(But) we won't be changing the policy settings."

However, Mr Combet said Labor would amend the bills if that was needed "to ensure that we're implementing the policy in an appropriate way".

The White Australia policy describes Australia's approach to immigration, from federation until 1973, which favoured English-speaking Europeans.

Combet

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Your Comments

imaginary policy

joe dirt - from qld, 2 years ago

What a joke, lets spend millions to become so called carbon neutral buying emission offsets that aren't even really making a difference. Majority of these offsets are "imaginary" it just keeps blowing out to non obtainable levels. If you want this policy to go through money should be spent on renewable alternatives/processes actually "in" Australia. Meanwhile china is building a coal powered power station every 2 week

Racist policy

Mario Recuero - from Auburn, 2 years ago

So this guy wants me to pay for some polluter buying pine trees in Uganda ? How does that help the Australian clean air that Gillard goes on about. Lunacy !

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