Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

As the Senate would know, the government's position is the same as that of the opposition, which is a five per cent reduction by 2020 of 2000 levels. The legislation the government has put forward will ensure that caps are set over the period out to 2020 beyond the fixed price period in order to achieve that outcome.

I would make the point that, just as the government has a commitment to a five per cent reduction by 2020, so do the opposition. Of course, the difference is that the government's policy will cost Australians less. It will cost Australian households less, Australian taxpayers less and Australian business less. The reality is that, should the opposition ever be in a position to implement their so-called 'Direct Action' policy, the economy would be far worse off than under a carbon price, which economists have told both sides of politics, including Prime Minister Howard, is the most efficient way to reduce emissions. In terms of the actual abatement outcome for the first three years, I will take that part of the question on notice and I will see if I can assist the cackling Senator Abetz with that information in the near future.