The ‘R’ word we didn’t need – Environment – smh.com.au
The ‘R’ word we didn’t need
Peter Hartcher Political Editor
June 4, 2007
AdvertisementAdvertisementJOHN HOWARD has launched the Government’s climate change fright line for the Federal election.
He announced yesterday that the Government would embrace the recommendation of its emissions trading taskforce to launch a carbon emissions trading system by 2012.
At the same time, the Prime Minister delivered the Big Scare.
Labor’s environment spokesman, Peter Garrett, Howard said yesterday, “wants a 20 per cent reduction in emissions from 1990 levels by 2020”.
“To meet such a target the emissions trading taskforce concluded that it would require, and I quote, ‘replacing Australia’s entire existing fossil fuel-fired electricity generation capacity with electricity from nuclear power, while at the same time removing all vehicles from our roads,’ end of quote.”