Paris deal marks turning point: Labor

Federal Labor has welcomed the UN climate agreement but says the government's direct action plan is inadequate to fulfil its commitment.

Source: AAP

Labor has called on Malcolm Turnbull to scrap the government's direct action policy to give Australia a shot at meeting new targets to combat climate change.

It says the legally-binding agreement to limit global warming to well below two degrees Celsius - aiming for 1.5 degrees - shows a level of ambition not previously seen.

"The objectives of the agreement are crystal clear and Australia now needs to match policies to these objectives," Opposition Leader Bill Shorten and environment spokesman Mark Butler said in a joint statement on Sunday.

The Abbott-Turnbull government's direct action policy that pays polluters is completely inadequate and puts Australia on a trajectory to fail, they say.

"Now is the time for Malcolm Turnbull to step up and dump his party's continuing support for Tony Abbott's direct action fraud," they said.

"He must show leadership and honesty on climate change and stare down the National Party and the far right of his Liberal Party."