Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for La Trobe for his question. The government is, as he knows, taking strong and effective action to reduce our contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions. We will meet and, indeed, exceed the existing 2020 target. We have put measures in place to support the uptake of new technologies to improve energy efficiency. We will meet our 2020 target; indeed, as the Minister for the Environment said, we will exceed it. We have committed to reduce emissions by 26 to 28 per cent on 2005 levels by 2030. This compares well to other countries. On a per capita basis our emissions will be reduced by half. It will reduce emissions per unit of GDP by two-thirds.

Australia accounts for just over one per cent of global emissions and, therefore, we should be part of a coordinated global agreement that includes the major emitters, our major trading partners and, indeed, developed and developing countries. Any agreement must set a common basis for all countries to take action to reduce emissions, to provide transparency and accountability—and that is what we will be negotiating in Paris—and to set five-year reviews to monitor global progress.

The coalition has adopted a target that is environmentally and economically responsible and one that we are confident we will achieve. The opposition has taken the opposite approach. They have plucked a figure out of the air—a reckless, pie-in-the-sky target of 45 per cent—that will be a huge hit to the Australian economy. The opposition has no idea how they will achieve their target other than through a supercharged carbon tax.

Mr Thistlethwaite interjecting—

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