Greg Combet (Charlton, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Change) Share this | Hansard source

Of course, it is not the government’s policy position that is in disarray here; it is the coalition. Let us just start at the most practical level about the issue of jobs in the context of the current economic environment, because no-one can take the coalition seriously after they voted against the $42 billion Nation Building and Jobs Plan. Just consider what the coalition voted against. There was $12.2 billion for one-off cash payments to eligible families, single workers, students, drought affected farmers and others to support domestic demand and consumption in the economy that supports jobs. They voted against it. There was $14.7 billion in Building the Education Revolution for investments in education throughout the country, new infrastructure in every school to provide much-needed maintenance and new facilities—$14.7 billion that will support jobs in every community throughout this country. The coalition voted against it—against practical job initiatives. There was $6.4 billion to build more than 20,000 new social and Defence houses, practical investment in job creation throughout the country in the midst of the global financial crisis. The coalition voted against it. There was a temporary business investment tax break for small and general businesses to buy eligible assets worth more than $1,000, which will support job creation in the small business sector and support small business at a difficult period of time. The coalition voted against it. There was $2.7 billion for free ceiling insulation for 2.7 million households, acknowledged throughout the household insulation sector in the economy as something that is going to immediately create jobs. The coalition voted against it. There were significant increases in funding for local community infrastructure and local road projects. The coalition voted against them. They voted against all of those job creation measures. Neither can they let go of their commitment to the Work Choices legislation, another piece of legislation that was a job destroyer. The attack on protection against unfair dismissal alone led to many people losing their jobs.

They are a coalition that cannot be taken seriously on economic issues and on job creation. If they need any guidance to understand their current position in the polls, they need look no further than their position, their confusion and their disarray on the Nation Building and Jobs Plan that the government has prosecuted and the support for jobs throughout the economy; on industrial relations; and on climate change.

On that issue, let us get something straight, in answer to the previous speaker’s submissions. The government has released the exposure draft for the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme. It has followed an extensive process of consultation over a considerable period of time with industry stakeholders. For example, I have only just finished meeting with the Australian Coal Association, but of course my colleague the Minister for Climate Change and Water and many other ministers in this government and departmental officials have been meeting with industry stakeholders, environment groups and community organisations over the last 16 months to formulate the detail of this proposal, which is revealed in the exposure draft released by the minister yesterday.

A balance has been struck in transitioning this economy to ultimately lower emissions technology as well as protection for the environment. This is an issue in relation to which leadership is needed, not carping, and where tough decisions have to be taken. This government proudly stands by the work that has been done in the development of the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, and in particular all of the work by the minister. We as a country need action on climate change to protect the environment and to encourage investment and jobs in lower emissions technology and the renewable energy sector. We need to support jobs in important industries that are severely impacted upon by the effect of climate change, like agriculture and tourism, we need to support jobs in emissions intensive industries as the economy transitions to lower emissions technologies and we need to show leadership in the international community on this issue. That is why the government has actively pursued the development of policy responses to climate change, and in particular the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme.

We will not as a nation achieve anything on this issue by doing nothing at all. The problem for the coalition fundamentally stems from the fact that they do not believe the science. It is accepted that 13 of the 14 warmest years on record occurred between 1995 and 2008. Australia has experienced warmer than average mean annual temperatures for 17 of the last 18 years. And yet they cannot accept that. The average temperature in Australia has increased by 0.9 degrees Celsius between 1910 and 2007 and it is projected to increase by one to five degrees Celsius by 2070 compared with 1990 levels. This is science that the coalition cannot accept.

The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics has predicted that if we do not act on climate change then exports of key commodities will fall by up to 63 per cent by 2030 and up to 79 per cent by 2050—that is, if we do nothing then we are going to lose jobs in those key parts of the economy. The CSIRO also estimates that if temperatures rose by just two to three degrees then almost all of the Great Barrier Reef would be bleached, putting $4.9 billion of tourism at risk—that is a lot of jobs that would go by doing nothing. The CSIRO has also estimated that if temperatures rise by just two to three degrees then 80 per cent of Kakadu’s freshwater wetlands will be lost to rising sea levels. This is just some of the scientific evidence and the conclusions that have been drawn that the coalition seems to struggle to accept. The underlying issue is this: if we take no action as a country, there are huge consequences for employment, economic activity and investment in this country—and action we must take.

But we do not see anything from the coalition in terms of a policy response to this. Let us not forget the fact that for 12 years no action was taken by the Howard government in response to climate change. The Howard government spent more on taxpayer funded advertising than they had budgeted to spend on tackling climate change over four years. The Howard government refused to ratify the Kyoto protocol. We have just heard the previous speaker, the shadow minister, nominate that Australia will meet its Kyoto targets. That is a pretty sound reason why the Howard government might have signed the Kyoto protocol. But no action was taken. They failed in 2003 to act on Treasury advice to introduce an emissions trading scheme—

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