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A Liberal MP says the Federal Government should not revise its greenhouse reduction targets following the signing of the historic climate change deal in Paris.
The global climate change conference adopted an international accord on Sunday, aimed at transforming the world’s fossil fuel-driven economy within decades and slowing the pace of global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius.
The Federal Government said the agreement would allow for further action to be taken in the future to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Historic climate deal
- Deal to limit global warming to “well below” 2C, aiming for 1.5C
- Greenhouse gas emissions need to peak “as soon as possible”, followed by rapid reduction
- Deal will eliminate use of coal, oil and gas for energy
- Fossil fuels to be replaced by solar, wind power
- Developed countries to provide $ US100b a year from 2020 to help developing nations
- Read about more highlights of the deal
But Liberal MP Dennis Jensen claims the agreement is “essentially meaningless” and that the Government should not change its current emissions target.
“The entire globe needs to have similar commitments and be similarly achieving those goals,” he said.
“[There is] no reason why we should be metaphorically burning our economy just to appear good on the global stage.”
Liberal MP Craig Kelly has meanwhile used Facebook to poke fun at the proposal.
Australia’s target of a 26 to 28 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions below 2005 levels by 2030 remains unchanged, but the Paris agreement will put pressure on the Government to do more.
The deal puts in place mechanisms to review reduction targets every five years starting from 2020, which will include Australia.
Each stocktake will have to result in a more ambitious target, which is expected to cause concern within the Coalition.
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop conceded that would be a challenge for the Government, but that the deal would provide further “flexibility” to do more on climate change.
“Of course if we’re being ambitious over time we will need to work even harder,” Ms Bishop told reporters in Paris after the signing of the deal.
“But we don’t want to damage our economy without having an environmental impact.”
Topics: climate-change, world-politics, federal-government, australia
