The decision by Australia’s Labor shadow cabinet to block bills aimed at repealing the carbon price laws unless the new conservative Liberal-National government moves to an Emissions Trading Scheme in 2014, means Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s plans may have to wait at least nine months.
Opposition leader Bill Shorten has now said Labor will seek to amend the government’s repeal laws after they are introduced in the first week of parliament starting on November 12.
“The opposition will move amendments consistent with our pre-election commitments to terminate the carbon price on the basis of moving to an effective Emissions Trading Scheme,” Mr Shorten told AAP Newsagency.
“However, if our amendments are not successful we will oppose the government’s repeal legislation, in line with our long-held principle position to act on climate change.”
Labor with the help of the Australian Greens Party legislated the carbon price which began on July 1 last year and which reverts to an ETS, linked to the European Union ETS, in July 2015.
Mr Abbott has argued his election win gave him a clear mandate to abolish Labor’s carbon price and associated climate change agencies and replace them with his Direct Action plan.
However, Mr Shorten said Labor was not a “rubber stamp” for Mr Abbott.
“We won’t be bullied, and I won’t be bullied by Tony Abbott merely because he doesn’t accept the science of climate change,” Mr Shorten said after a shadow cabinet meeting decided on its approach to the repeal legislation.
Labor and the Australian Greens will hold the b alance of power in the upper house Senate until July next year and that will mean the legislation won’t be passed unless the conservative government agrees to amend it to include an ETS>
Environment Minister Greg Hunt says the ETS is “exactly the same” as the current fixed carbon price and the government would not support it.
Mr Hunt said repealing the carbon price would save households $550 a year, a fact that’s disputed by experts.
Business Council of Australia chief Jennifer Westacott wants the Labor opposition to support the coalition’s legislation.
“The last thing business and the economy needs is for actions by the parliament to lead to one of the world’s highest carbon prices remaining in place for an extended and uncertain period,” Ms Westacott said.
Under Labor’s carbon pricing regime, big polluters paid a fixed price, currently about $24 a tonne of emissions, ahead of the shift to a market-based ETS in 2015.
The new government has the numbers in the House of Representatives to pass its legislation but Labor and the Australian Greens will amend the bills in the Senate.
The detail of Labor’s amendments, which are yet to receive full caucus endorsement, will be released before parliament resumes and the party will support a Senate inquiry into the bills.
Labor’s decision lays the groundwork for a possible double-dissolution election, which Mr Abbott has said is an option if he can’t pass his bills.
This could occur if the lower house fails to accept the Senate-amended bills, or the Senate rejects the bills outright, and the same thing occurs when they are reintroduced after a period of three months.
“We will not stop until the carbon tax is repealed,” Mr Hunt said.
“We will take each step methodically and with complete intention until the carbon tax is repealed.”
The government is likely to get its way in the Senate after July 1 when a number of independent senators from minor parties who mostly oppose the carbon price take up their seats.
One Response
Bill Shorten is clearly anti-democratic, the people have decided for better or worse No Carbon Tax, but Bill still has to do the bidding of his Mother In-Law, the Governor General….
All he will succeed in doing is ‘Shorten’ his own Political career…..