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July 18, 2008
The greenhouse mafia in action and the commonwealth government's response:
Moir
So it is easy to see what the politics of emissions trading is all about. The Green paper may say all the right things about the urgency of the climate change problem, but The Rudd Government's politics is basically about industry protection and selling out to the heavy polluters. It's more of less an embrace of the Shergold position under the Howard regime.
That position was primarily about cushioning the effects of the carbon price on industry to delay the desired change in behaviour to reduce emissions and shift to a low-carbon economy. The big changes would be put off way into the future.
The next step in backflipping comes with the targets . The Rudd Government is still talking in terms of a 60% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050. So what will it be for 2020? A 10% reduction? The assumption here is that carbon capture and storage will be economic because renewables such as solar, geothermal power and wind are far too expensive. To prevent the latter from falling in price rapidly, and so making carbon capture and storage uneconomic, the price of carbon needs to be kept low, so that the renewables remain uneconomic.
Coal must rule. Hence all the threats to cut investment, abolish jobs, shift plants offshore, etc etc.
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The ALP Right has no love for their Geeens. They are passionate in their hatred of their enemy.
The big fight with the Greens will be over the targets for emission reduction.
The more its business as suaul on emissions reduction the more the leakage of the ALP's inner city left vote to the Greens.