Australia left behind

Tuesday, 23 January 2007

US, Aust industry emissions trading shift further isolates Howard Govt

The Howard government's stubborn refusal to introduce a national emissions trading scheme has become even more untenable as major companies in Australia and the US call for the urgent introduction of a cap-and-trade scheme, the Australian Greens said today.

In the US overnight the United States Climate Action Partnership (USCAP), which includes major greenhouse gas polluters like Du Pont and General Electric united in a call for swift legislative action to introduce a cap-and-trade emissions trading scheme to aggressively and sustainably slow, stop and reverse the growth of greenhouse gas emissions.

At the same time, a new Australian business and climate risk working group has formed to accelerate the take-up of low-carbon technology.

"The Howard government is now alone in resisting carbon pricing and it has no further excuses for delay, especially since business does not want uncertainty about a price signal on carbon prolonged," Greens climate change spokesperson Senator Christine Milne said.

"It should now take on the responsibility of developing a national emissions trading scheme from the state governments who have already made progress, and introduce a national scheme to commence in 2008.

"The Howard government's emissions trading taskforce is just another delaying tactic because it is looking only at a global scheme and will not examine a national emissions trading scheme.

"If Prime Minister John Howard wants to trade emission rights with other nations all he has to do is ratify the Kyoto Protocol."