Tanner spruiks ETS life after death

The federal Department of Climate Change will continue to have more than 150 staff work on introducing an emissions trading scheme even if the Senate stops it happening,

Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner says.

The Australian Climate Change Regulation Authority was established in June 2009 and given $81.9 million for this financial year to implement an ETS, The Canberra Times reports.

Asked if the 150 public servants would be needed if the Senate continued to reject the government's ETS, Mr Tanner said the people were necessary for dealing with a huge economic challenge.

"One way or another, whatever the content of the approach that's going to be, we're going to need serious, skilled people, people with expertise to be working on Australia's response," the minister told Network Ten on Sunday.

The government's ETS is due to be voted on in the Senate during the February sitting of parliament.

It has already been rejected twice, and could give the government grounds to call a double dissolution election.

Economy still fragile

Tanner also told Network Ten that the Australian economy is very fragile, but less so than a year ago.

till, he has rejected opposition suggestions the government should wind back its unspent stimulus.

"The Australian economy is still very fragile and it still needs a significant ongoing stimulus but less than what was the case last year," Mr Tanner said.

A little over half of the government's $42 billion stimulus package has actually been spent, Mr Tanner said.

Some of it would be subject to contracts or milestone payments for unfinished projects.

Asked about reducing government debt, the minister said it would be a very big task. "We haven't set a specific figure on the savings target," he said.

On the issue of the Opposition's economic team, he took the opportunity to lambast the Coalition's weak economic credentials, branding it 'lightweight.'