Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition will be aware that it is the government's policy to achieve net zero as soon as possible, and preferably by 2050. The IPCC report that was released and we commented on yesterday is a very serious report. It's a report that affirms the position that the government has been taking to take action on climate change and to ensure that we continue to reduce emissions. Australia has reduced emissions by 20 per cent on 2005 levels. We have met and we have beaten our Kyoto targets. We will meet and we will beat our Paris commitments for 2030. We will exceed those commitments, and I'll tell you why we will do that. It is because Australian households, Australian businesses, Australian farmers, Australian manufacturers and Australian miners, all of them, are making changes in their businesses, supported by the policies of our government, whether that be to put solar panels on roofs, and we have the highest level of that in the world, or whether that be in rolling out renewable technologies and investments, which are eight times the global average—greater than that of the EU and greater even than that of countries like Germany.

But what we also note—and it is why technology, not taxes, is so important and why commitments without plans are a danger—is that what's important is that technology drive the changes that are needed. It's important that technology drive the changes that are needed because I know that, on this issue of net zero by 2050, the opposition has made an unqualified commitment—a blank cheque commitment with no plan—that will see a policy put in place by those opposite, because they're not supporting technology; they're voting against technology in this parliament. They're voting against it, and if you're not going to back technology, there's only one thing you will back, and that is taxes.

The policy of the Labor Party on this important policy issue has always been to tax their way to these commitments, not invest through technology to achieve these commitments. On our side of the House, we will focus on the climate action that is necessary not only to achieve the results here in Australia but to ensure that the technology that is developed can be made available and supported throughout developing countries of this world, which account for two-thirds of global emissions and rising. China alone accounts for similar emissions and, if fact, more than all OECD countries combined. That's where the solutions need to be applied.

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