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Claim: Aussie PM Edging Towards a 2050 Carbon Pledge

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Guest essay by Eric Worrall

Surprise! When Aussies re-elected conservative PM Scott Morrison in the last national election, we thought we were rejecting the hardline climate madness of the Labor opposition party. Turns out we were mistaken.

Morrison eyeing more ambitious climate target of net zero by 2050

By David Crowe
February 1, 2021 — 7.16pm

A more ambitious climate change target will be part of Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s agenda for the year ahead after he expressed his hope to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050, a goal that divides government MPs.

Mr Morrison signalled his hope to set the target as government policy before the next election, after months of internal Coalition debate and a rebuff from global leaders in December because he would not make the pledge.

…

“Our goal is to reach net zero emissions as soon as possible, and preferably by 2050,” he said.

Mr Morrison said this would depend on science and technology, such as driving down the cost of clean energy from hydrogen, rather than a “tax” in the form of a price on carbon.

…

Asked on Monday whether he could commit to net zero by 2050 in time for the United Nations climate summit in Glasgow in November, Mr Morrison said the answer depended on the science and technology.

“When I can tell you how we get there, that’s when I’ll tell you when we’re going to get there,” he said.

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Read more: https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/morrison-eyeing-more-ambitious-climate-target-of-net-zero-by-2050-20210201-p56yj3.html

It is possible Scott Morrison, who famously brought a lump of coal to parliament, is just playing for time, trying to delay real action until Americans tire of Job Killer Joe and his magic pen.

But words have consequences. If Scott Morrison doesn’t try to find at least a little backbone on this issue, it seems likely Australia could be rushed into a raft of economically destructive climate actions, just when the economy is starting to show a few signs of recovery from Covid lockdowns.

via Watts Up With That?

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February 3, 2021 at 12:57AM