Quantcast
Channel: The Daily Blog » Moana Mackey
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 10

Why Labour’s Red has a deeper tinge of Green on climate change

0
0

John-Key-sold-environment

I recently did a political panel on environmental issues at the Glass Packaging Forum AGM. The National representative Maggie Barry got herself into quite a state of excitement regarding Labour and Green Party climate change policies declaring that our difference in opinion over the preferred mechanism for pricing carbon – a trading scheme versus a tax – showed that it would be “impossible” for Labour and the Greens to work together.

I asked her how she felt her Government’s climate change policy would align with Colin Craig’s. I suspect there are a number in her caucus who are privately hoping it does.

The Greens carbon tax announcement did reignite debate on climate change which is most welcome. I have however been bemused by the surprise from some quarters at Labour’s response to it  - that we have our own policy in this area and our policy remains the same despite a potential coalition partner taking a different view. The Greens have proposed a credible alternative for pricing carbon but our preference remains, as it has been since we enacted it in 2008, an Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). Hardly earth-shattering stuff.

The more important point is that Labour and the Greens both want to see action on climate change. We both want to put in place a comprehensive climate strategy in which pricing carbon is but one aspect (albeit a very important one). Differing over which mechanism we would prefer to price carbon does not in any way derail the bigger picture.

Labour’s ETS was working as intended before National began its systematic gutting of the scheme in 2009. It was never given the opportunity to do what it was intended to do as the world’s first all-sectors all-gases trading scheme. Labour believes it can work again.

Labour shares the same concerns as the Greens regarding the exploitation of loopholes in the ETS that have gone completely unchecked by the National Government. As an example I have a member’s bill in the ballot to restrict the flood of cheap international units which have allowed the carbon price to collapse and devastate our carbon forestry sector. I put the same amendment up during the last ETS reform bill and we nearly got it across the line until Peter Dunne decided not to support the restriction. These loopholes are there not because the ETS is fundamentally flawed  but because National has allowed them to remain. We would close these loopholes as a matter of priority. And as with any tax there would also be potential loopholes with a carbon tax.

I am the only MP who has sat on every ETS select committee since the original bill in 2008. There was one issue on which advocates and opponents alike spoke with one voice – the need for certainty and stability. There are not many areas in climate change policy where we manage to achieve relatively broad agreement across the political spectrum but pricing carbon via an ETS was one. It is still the preference of the two largest political parties. While I appreciate that in practice the support from National is nothing more than lip service you still don’t throw away bipartisan support lightly.

Labour will, as a priority, begin the transition away from an economy heavily reliant on fossil fuels with ever-increasing gross greenhouse gas emissions to one that is based on clean energy, green technology, and is low-carbon.

We have a window of opportunity in a world seeking low-carbon solutions to leverage our natural strengths by supporting and promoting the renewable energy and low-carbon expertise that exists in New Zealand. Instead we are currently being overtaken by other countries that also see these opportunities and are actively pursuing them.

The National party seems to think that serious climate change policy, or indeed any policy that protects the environment, is some kind of luxury we cannot afford. They could not be more wrong. Transitioning away from our reliance on fossil fuels to a low-carbon future is not a “nice to have”. This is about future-proofing our economy.

Labour does not believe it is fair for future generations to be burdened with the environmental and economic debt of National’s complete inaction on climate change and post-election we look forward to working with like-minded parties who want to see urgent action on climate change and a transition to a clean energy future.


Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 10

Latest Images

Trending Articles





Latest Images