Environment
OUCH: Greens groups split from Greens political party on carbon emissions plan
The Greens political party has been left reeling following the Rudd government’s announcement that it would defer the implementation of its controversial emissions trading scheme but would commit to deeper cuts if other countries would too.
Three key environmental groups – key parts of the political and financial base of the Greens – not only supported the change of policy but apparently also played a role in devising it.
Despite the strong support from leading Greens groups like the Australian Conservation Foundation, the World Wildlife Fund and the Climate Institute, the Greens political party will be voting the proposal down.
Their leader Senator Bob Brown appearing in digitally altered and wince-inducing form above has said as much by saying the government is positioning the legislation as a double dissolution trigger.
That seems rather unlikely as there’s not a vote in it in any battleground seats. Note the American term, marginal seems so unexciting and non-military a word.
The Green Brown told the ABC:
“Today’s proposals from Kevin Rudd is another year’s delay if not two years’ delay in meeting dangerous climate change facing the planet. It’s irresponsible behaviour from where I sit, having heard the evidence of top scientists to the Senate committee that we need to be in the range of 25 to 40 per cent.
“That’s where the Greens (political party) are, and that’s what the international potential target stated at the Bali talks two years ago was, and since then, we’ve seen accelerating bad news on climate change.”
That sounds like a no.
Given how important ‘global warming’ (now called climate change when the globe started cooling off) is as an article of faith in the Greens political party, this is clearly a deep crisis.
The normally sympathetic environment reporter at the Sydney Morning Herald Stephanie Peatling wrote:
THE Federal Government’s revised emissions trading scheme has caused the environment movement to cave in on itself.
The Greens dismissed the Government’s decision to reconsider a 25 per cent greenhouse pollution reduction target as an “almost irrelevant green distraction” and were privately critical of the groups that supported it.
Three environment groups, the Australian Conservation Foundation, WWF and the Climate Institute, said it was important the amended package was passed by Parliament.
Ominously for the Greens, Michelle Grattan in The Aged reads the extremists the last rites in terms of their influence on this issue:
The 25 per cent target wasn’t a pitch for the Greens; Rudd isn’t interested in dealing with them.
The government’s position is this. We’ll make deep cuts, really deep cuts to carbon emissions in conjunction with – and only in conjunction with – the rest of the world. The logic being there is little point making unilateral unconditional local changes to address a problem we are all assured is global.
Sounds entirely fair to us.
Turnbull now faces a choice of keeping the issue alive as a distraction for inner-city Liberals like himself while being able to talk up the dangers to the economy from Rudd’s scheme or trying to paint himself with that oh-so-trendy light blue and green adopted by UK PM in waiting David Cameron.
Those kinds of decisions are why Turnbull’s job is the worst one in politics and why this highly articulated talented chap ought to have waited until the times suited him. They destroyed Nelson who was just hitting his stride as Leader for no good reason. Turnbull will be more resilient but he’s going to need to be.
The government’s backdown on climate change ended up being quite the positive yesterday, a credit to their spinning, their wedging of the Green but also because walking away from extremist positions on carbon emissions is always going to be the right answer.
Discussion
16 comments for “OUCH: Greens groups split from Greens political party on carbon emissions plan”
Post a comment
Rudd adopts Howard’s climate policy and Andy reckon that’s ‘the last rites’ for the Greens?! (haw haw, chuckle, snort)
There are no Greens spies in my operation, how about you Sharon?
Five Senators and no impact.
They should give up and go back to the commune.
How is it Howard’s climate policy? It’s an ETS that Howard refused.
try to keep up, EO. that’s the reason WHY it puts the liberals in such a spot.
and particularly turnbull, as he took the ETS, under exactly this model, to the election as Howard’s environment minister.
i feel an early election coming on
Bang was that early erection?
The Greens are looking like they are an irrelevant group who can only make pie in the sky comments.
Honeys…
Always way out of their depth…
Too single issue to be a viable third force…
Isolated from their environmental base…
Letting the major parties off the hook, every time – seriously!
The Australian Democrats are rebuilding. Sign up to hear the news first http://www.democrats.org.au/signup
Buddy, the greens have always been an irrelevant group only encouraged by a lazy media and unthinking doctor’s wives.
Typical that the Greens are a rabble. The tree huggers talk heeps of shit but can’t get their act together. They just can’t deliver. They get support from a few fringe socialist dickheads to get some of their knobs into Parliament. Their idea’s sink faster than whale shit.
Oh dear Andrew, your showing how little you like doing research.
The Greens don’t have any environmental groups who support them like unions do the ALP. In fact many more unions contribute to the Greens than do environmental groups who don’t have the money to give to political parties.
the Australian Conservation Foundation, the World Wildlife Fund and the Climate Institute are not Key Greens players. they are green players.
The sooner you do some research before your boring rants begin the better. Some one might accuse you of *gasp* ignorance.
Oh dear “Dug Fred”, if indeed that is your real name,
I love doing research.
And that research has previously led us to discover lots of interesting things about the Greens political party and some of the colourful folk within.
We won’t rehash Stephen Luntz’s makeover, the huge bunfight over Qld and Vic Greens preslections and other amusements.
But we’ll offer you this mungbean food for thought.
The multi-million dollar Greens (I think we’ll let them keep the cap for consistency’s sake) groups like the ACF do normally directly and indirectly support the Greens political party.
As one of many examples, check out the “Vote Environment” campaign run in most elections, paid for by these Greens groups to assist the Greens political party.
http://ecnt.org/html/media_other_2001_11_08.html
Their entitled to exercise their free speech rights but given the enormous taxpayer funds and benefits they receive some have thought these Greens groups might be better off keeping out of political party endorsements.
There are many other points of connection that funnel money and support from these Greens groups to the Greens political party, mainly through employing prospective Greens party candidates.
Our favourite Green – because he is a shrewd operator who would really be at home in the Labor Right – Greg Barber is one example. He used to work at the Wilderness Society, shaking down money from corporates.
http://mps.vic.greens.org.au/gregbarber/about
Our least favourite Green deposed Senator Kerry Nettle is said to be “consulting” to various Greens groups in between trips in support of the murderous misogynist Hamas regime in Gaza.
So I’m not sure why you bother denying the multiple points of connection, that taxpayer funded Greens groups slyly support the Greens political party most of the time barely rates as news except for the trouble they get into for breaching the Tax Office’s rules about charities can and can’t do.
Hope those facts don’t muddle your firmly held opinions too much.
Go in grace,
Honeys…
Andy Pandy Landy really needs a reality check.
The Greens only dilute the Labor vote… and split preferences less than 100%… they may take some socialista seats as a consequence.
When things get tighter (as they will) Labor will not be so kind to the Grunen.
P.S. Gregory Barber is about as “shrewd” as a walnut – just ask Phil Davis and David David about this – they play him like a harmonica and he thanks them… seroiusly!!!
P.S. did I neglect to tell the progressive third force people this:
The Democrats are rebuilding
http://democrats.org.au/campaigns/democrats_rebuilding_project/