Key Points
- Labor is set to unveil its 2035 climate target after cabinet approval in Sydney.
- Treasury has modelled an emissions reduction between 65 and 75 per cent, put forward by the Climate Change Authority.
- Environmental groups have called for a target of no less than 80 per cent.
Labor will put its environmental credentials on display when it unveils its ambition for climate action.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is poised to announce Australia's anticipated 2035 emissions reduction target on Thursday.
The climate policy will first need to be signed off by cabinet, with a meeting of the government's senior ministers to take place in Sydney beforehand.
The Treasury has modelled an emissions reduction cut of between 65 and 75 per cent, as put forward by the Climate Change Authority.
But the Albanese government has been called on by environmental groups to set a target of no less than 80 per cent.
The Australian Conservation Foundation said a target that high would "give Australians and our environment the best chance of holding global warming at the safest levels now possible".
Business groups on the other hand stand at the opposite end of the spectrum, warning a target higher than 70 per cent would risk more than $150 billion in exports and send companies offshore.
What about the Paris Agreement?
Under the Paris Agreement, signed a decade ago, members must increase their emissions targets every five years and cannot water them down.
Nations that signed up must submit their new targets by the end of this month.
Australia has legislated a 43 per cent reduction in emissions from 2005 levels by 2030.
The Paris Agreement, which Australia and 195 other parties adopted in 2015, aims to limit global temperature rises to 1.5C and less than 2C.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers confirmed on Wednesday the economic cost of the government's 2035 target will also be released.
He said Australia walking away from net-zero would be the "worst possible outcome" from both an economic and environmental point of view.
What has the Opposition said?
In her first major economic speech as Opposition leader, Sussan Ley lowered tensions among her own rank and file by indicating a potential change in the Coalition's climate policy.
"We will not have net zero at any cost because the cost can be too high," she told the Committee for Economic Development of Australia in Melbourne.
"And right now, it looks like the cost is too high when you consider what this government is about to do with its Paris targets."
"I'll hold that conversation until they actually make their announcement," Ley said.
The Coalition remains divided over the key climate target, with Liberal MP Andrew Hastie threatening to quit the frontbench if the net-zero commitment isn't dumped.
The Opposition home affairs spokesperson has confirmed his own leadership ambitions, but said Ley has his support as leader.
Following its massive election defeat in May, the Coalition is conducting a wide-ranging review, which includes scrutiny of its energy policy.
