26 March 2009
Dear Minister Albanese, I am writing to thank you for meeting with Climate Action Newtown and Climate Change Balmain Rozelle on Friday 27 February. We were pleased to have the opportunity to discuss with you this most important of issues and to present in person the number of serious concerns we have regarding the government’s proposed climate policy response, in particular the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CRPS). We were also pleased to hear your assurances that government decisions are being made based on full understanding of the latest climate science. At the same time, however, we were distressed to hear this assurance as it reinforces our concern that the government is making decisions with complete knowledge and understanding of the dire implications of those decisions for the planet and its people. I do not wish to reiterate our discussion in full but will again indicate community groups from across Australia have committed to campaigning against the CPRS due to a number of fundamental flaws in the scheme as currently proposed. Targets that, if adopted globally, would commit us to collapse of the earth’s life support systems are not acceptable. Huge compensation for those industries who have profited most from polluting for decades is unacceptable. Scheme mechanisms such as free permits, unlimited international trading of permits, a price cap, and undermining of voluntary action are all unacceptable, as they lock us into a position of failure for the next decade – a decade so crucial for ensuring a return to a safe climate future. Community climate groups and citizens around the country are calling for an immediate and rapid transition to 100% renewable energy. We need large scale investment in the thousands of green jobs that are the jobs of the future and just transitions for workers in coal and other affected communities. We need to be adopting a position of leadership at global negotiations in Copenhagen this year to ensure the world reaches an agreement to cut emissions to levels required to protect the planet and its people. I would like to quote back to you some words you spoke during a speech in 2006:
“One of my favourite parts of An Inconvenient Truth, the documentary by Al Gore, is that, just like the Stern report, there is a message of hope. There is a warning of danger, a challenge to governments to take up what is necessary, but an optimistic projection if we have the courage to make the decisions that are needed. As Al Gore has pointed out, the Chinese expression for crisis consists of two characters: the first is a symbol for danger; the second is a symbol for opportunity. What we are getting from this government is all the danger
combined with the loss of opportunity, the loss of investment that should be occurring and isolation from the massive trillion dollar emerging market in renewables in our region... [This]is a government that literally has been fossilised in the past. It is an abrogation of its responsibility to this generation and to future generations not to have a comprehensive plan to avoid dangerous climate change.”
Minister, your words regarding hope, optimism and the need for courage were deeply admirable and reflect the views of thousands of people working for real climate solutions around the country today. Unfortunately however, we also believe your words regarding previous government inaction also apply to the policies of the government of today. As someone who has spoken out strongly on this issue in the past, your constituents are calling on you to again take action within cabinet, parliament and your portfolio to do everything you can to ensure Australia has a comprehensive plan to avoid dangerous climate change . We look forward to an ongoing dialogue with you on this most critical matter. Kind regards, Lindsay Soutar Climate Action Newtown