Andrew Robb (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and COAG and Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader on Emissions Trading Design) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer the Prime Minister to the legislation before the congress in the United States which excludes United States farmers from an emissions trading scheme but allows them to earn extra income from offsets. Prime Minister, why is the government determined to ram through a flawed emissions trading scheme that leaves Australian farmers far worse off than their United States competitors?

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for Goldstein for his question. He is right to point out that we currently do not allow offsets from agricultural soils into the CPRS. He is right to point that out. We have also indicated, I believe, through the minister for climate change, that we would consider this further when there were changes to the international carbon accounting rules which would allow these credits to contribute to our international obligations under the Kyoto protocol. They do not at present. That is the problem. And—if those opposite would understand the difference—we, the Australian government, have ratified the Kyoto protocol. The United States government has not; it is a different regime. That is, therefore, underpinning the difference between us in our treatment of agriculture. Furthermore, it underpins the position which we articulated clearly at the time of the climate change white paper: that these matters would be reviewed generally in 2013 with a view to including agriculture in 2015. The specific reason for the honourable gentleman’s question lies with the fact that, under Kyoto, which we ratified, this is not currently counted. The United States have not actually ratified Kyoto and therefore they are, in that sense, outside the regime. That underpins our position and, as I said, the flexibility we have left ourselves for the future on that.