Parliament Updates

22 November 2021

TRANSCRIPT

As the dust settles on COP26 it's clear Australia is still the global laggard. We were awarded 'colossal fossil' at the conference. According to the International Energy Agency, global pledges and commitments would limit warming to 1.8 degrees if backed by sufficient policies, but the Morrison government failed to sign up to many of the global pledges and did much to deny and delay action. We were singled out as the only developed nation to not take significantly updated 2030 targets. We did not sign the global methane pledge and the zero emissions vehicle pledge, which committed to phasing out internal combustion engine vehicles by 2040. Within a few days of COP26, it was clear the Morrison government was not serious about action when Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce walked back the government's commitment to the Glasgow climate pact, saying the Nationals had not signed on. The modelling released by the government also reveals they have no intention of aiming to limit warming to 1.5 degrees, instead intending to increase gas exports to 2050.

The Prime Minister has a climate policy problem. He has the same 2030 target that Tony Abbott signed up to in 2015. We have a big job ahead of us for COP27 in Egypt to repair the damage. With an election coming, we need to commit to 2030 targets of 50 to 60 per cent emission reductions.