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Greenpeace energy campaigner Ben Pearson said:
“Announcing a climate change fund without details of size that won’t be functional for four years shows that John Howard still does not get the urgency with which we need to act.
“If revenues from permit auctioning end up going to the coal and nuclear industries this will be a win for the Greenhouse Mafia and a defeat for Australia’s national interest.
“A delay until 2011 is out of whack with the science, which says we need to take action to reduce emissions without delay.
“We see this kind of announcement whenever John Howard is under pressure on climate change; all pomp and circumstance.
“Any revenue from carbon trading should also include money for helping coal workers and coal dependent communities make the transition to sustainable industries and for no-brainer energy efficiency policies for example, by providing solar hot water heaters to low income families this government could reduce these households’ bills by a third.
“The PM is failing to provide detail on the most important issue we face today. Delays will only cost Australia more in the long term. We need binding targets to reduce emissions from 1990 levels by 30% by 2020 and a renewables target of 25% by 2020.
“Announcing a climate change fund without details of size that won’t be functional for four years shows that John Howard still does not get the urgency with which we need to act.
“If revenues from permit auctioning end up going to the coal and nuclear industries this will be a win for the Greenhouse Mafia and a defeat for Australia’s national interest.
“A delay until 2011 is out of whack with the science, which says we need to take action to reduce emissions without delay.
“We see this kind of announcement whenever John Howard is under pressure on climate change; all pomp and circumstance.
“Any revenue from carbon trading should also include money for helping coal workers and coal dependent communities make the transition to sustainable industries and for no-brainer energy efficiency policies for example, by providing solar hot water heaters to low income families this government could reduce these households’ bills by a third.
“The PM is failing to provide detail on the most important issue we face today. Delays will only cost Australia more in the long term. We need binding targets to reduce emissions from 1990 levels by 30% by 2020 and a renewables target of 25% by 2020.
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Contact Louise Clifton 0438 204041
