John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

Unlike the Labor Party—those who sit opposite—we have no intention of embracing a target when we do not know the economic consequences of it. We have no intention of embracing a target that is going to do damage to the business community. We have no intention of embracing a target that is going to do damage to the great coal industry of Australia. I can imagine the impact that the devastation of the coal industry would have on hundreds of thousands of small businesses, including many thousands of motels dotted around the country, that would be adversely affected. I can assure the Leader of the Opposition that when we receive this report it will be made available to the Australian public and it will represent this government approaching the issue of climate change in a methodical and systematic fashion.

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