Peter Dutton has vowed to abandon Australia’s commitment to the Paris Agreement on climate change, sparking fury from environmental activists.
The opposition leader confirmed he will abandon a legally binding commitment to cut emissions by 43 per cent by 2030 if he becomes prime minister.
The Coalition has argued that remaining committed to the Paris Agreement is doomed to failure and will destroy Australian industry in the process.
Instead, Dutton said he was committed to reaching net zero by 2050, but wants nuclear power to play a role in that ambition.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton (pictured) has confirmed he will abandon Australia’s legally binding commitment to cut emissions by 43 per cent by 2030 if he comes to power, arguing it is unattainable.
The Coalition has argued that remaining committed to the Paris Agreement is doomed to fail, while destroying Australian industry in the process (pictured, a solar farm in Gunnedah, New South Wales).
“They (Labour) simply have no hope of achieving the targets and there is no point in signing up to targets they have no prospect of achieving,” Dutton said. The Australian.
He added: “You can’t have the Prime Minister saying we’re not going to have coal, we’re not going to have gas and we’re not going to have nuclear power and we’re going to keep the lights on – that’s just fantasy.
“Now we have a debate about energy that I think we can win.”
Energy Minister Chris Bowen criticized the move and said the Paris Agreement was internationally binding.
‘At the moment, the countries outside the Paris agreement are Libya, Yemen and Iran. Is Mr Dutton proposing to include Australia in that venture now?
This criticism was echoed by environmental groups that accused the Liberal Party of adopting a “tremendously inappropriate” position.
“Mr Dutton’s plans would be an international embarrassment and would ruin our relationships with key allies who depend on Australia sticking to keeping 1.5 degrees alive,” said Kelly O’Shanasy, chief executive of the Australian Conservation Foundation.
“Mr Dutton is also betting on a nuclear fantasy that Australia does not need and Australians do not want.”
Dutton said he was committed to reaching net zero by 2050, but wants nuclear power to play a role in that ambition (file image of a nuclear power plant)
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (pictured) said Dutton was “never serious about climate change”.
Climate Council chief executive Amanda McKenzie said opting out of the Paris Agreement would make Australia a “global laughing stock”.
“Dutton’s climate policy is a disaster and the consequences for Australians would be more extreme heat, fires and flooding,” he said.
“Instead of trashing Australia’s 2030 climate targets, Peter Dutton must listen to communities already devastated by worsening climate disasters.”
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Dutton was “never serious about climate change”.
“It still won’t tell the Australian people where it plans to install its nuclear reactors or how much they will cost,” Albanese wrote in X.