Climate change and a government in denial

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/federal-politics/cartoons

While Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott was busy telling the world: I accept that climate change is a reality. And I support policies that will be effective in reducing emissions, but I do think there is too much climate-change alarmism and that executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change,Christiana Figueres was; talking through her hat.  

And Minister for the Environment Greg Hunt is accusing a BBC journalist of swearing by accurately quoting his prime minister and using crowd-sourced Wikipedia as a font of climate change science

A Federal Government department was being factually accurate and the national media was reminding the Abbott Government that former Coalition Prime Minister John Howard accepted the causal link between climate change and bushfire risk in 2006:

http://www.climatechange.gov.au/climate-change/grants/australian-climate-change-science-program/extreme-climate-events

3.1.4 Altered fire regimes

Fire presents a major threat to reserved lands and their constituent species and ecosystems, but also to a wide variety of cultural heritage assets. Wildfire science is complex, and the pressures and impacts depend on a combination of management regimes and the responses of different plant groups.³⁷ These factors will be affected by climate change, which will change the nature, intensity and frequency of fires.....

PM's southerly change: expect extreme weather

Andrew Darby in St Helens, Tasmania
December 14, 2006

THE Prime Minister, John Howard, last night embraced a key climate change forecast, warning Australians to prepare for more extreme weather events such as the current bushfires.

Visiting north-east Tasmania, he repeatedly made the point that the region was not normally associated with bushfires, and neither were they usually so common early in the summer.

On his last stop in St Helens, Mr Howard was asked if he accepted the scientists' predictions of more extreme weather events.

"Let me put it this way," he said. "I think the country should prepare for a continuation of what we are now experiencing … I think the likelihood of this going on is very strong."

Comparing Labor and Coalition borrowings in 2013

According to Liberal Senator Michaelia Cash on 14 August 2013; This year, Labor is borrowing $83 million per day.

On 3 September 2013 in a joint media release then Liberal shadow ministers Joe Hockey and Andrew Robb repeated this complaint;  Labor continues to borrow $83 million on average every day and posited Just imagine where debt will get to with another three years of Labor.

According to the Australian Office of Financial Management, since it was sworn in on 18 September 2013 the Abbott Government has borrowed an est. $265 million per day as of 29 October 2013.

Perhaps Treasurer Hockey and Minister for Trade and Investment Robb might like to explain why the Abbott Government is now borrowing at a higher rate than the former Labor Government if such debt is as bad as the Coalition has repeatedly asserted since 2007.

If Labor and the Greens hold firm families across the Northern Rivers may get the Schoolkids Bonus again next January - and perhaps retain other benefits

The bad news......

MRRT AND RELATED MEASURES REPEAL

On 24 October 2013, the Government released an exposure draft of the Minerals Resource Rent Tax Repeal and Other Measures Bill 2013 and explanatory memorandum for public consideration.

The Minerals Resource Rent Tax Repeal and Other Measures Bill 2013 removes the Minerals Resource Rent Tax with effect from 1 July 2014. The Bill also discontinues or re-phases the measures that were intended to be funded by the MRRT. The Bill includes the:

·         repeal of loss carry back;

·         reduction in the small business instant asset write off threshold;

·         repeal of accelerated depreciation for motor vehicles;

·         repeal of the geothermal exploration provisions;

·         re-phasing of the change in rate of the superannuation guarantee charge percentage;

·         repeal of the low income superannuation contribution;

·         repeal of the income support bonus; and

·         repeal of the schoolkids bonus.

Explanatory Memorandum
Exposure Draft

The Abbott Government expects to save $17 billion by repealing these eight measures.

What this means in money/tax concessions lost to ordinary families on the Northern Rivers.

      * How much of the legislated Superannuation Guarantee increase employed persons won’t be getting between 2016 to 2020 once this repeal bill is passed:

      * How much those earning under $37,000 per annum will lose from their superannuation each year when the Low income Superannuation Contribution is extinguished once the repeal bill is passed:

$500 per annum

      * How much eligible individuals will lose with the abolition of the Income Support Bonus under the repeal bill:

$211.60 for a single person per annum

$176.40 per annum per person in a couple.*

*Eligible members of a couple separated by illness, or couples where a partner is in

respite care or in gaol, receive the single rate of $105.80 (or $211.60 per

annum per person).

      * How much each eligible school child will lose when the Schoolkids Bonus is repealed under this bill:

Primary school child $410 per year

High school child $820 per year

The hopeful news.....

News.com.au  24 October 2013:

Despite Tony Abbott's vow to axe Julia Gillard's Schoolkids Bonus, the Government yesterday revealed that couldn't happen unless the Minerals Resource Rent Tax (MRRT) is repealed.

About 1.3 million families receiving Family Tax Benefit A are due to get the biannual payment of $410 per high school child and $205 per primary school child in January.

While the Prime Minister said scrapping the assistance was a tough call, the Government maintains the MRRT is not earning enough to pay its linked spending promises.

The contentious laws raised far less revenue than Labor predicted and Treasurer Joe Hockey said abolishing them could save the Budget more than $13 billion in the next four years as he released draft repeal laws.

But Labor indicated it's leaning towards joining the Greens to block the repeal in the Senate.

While the MRRT laws stand, so does the school payment, Income Support Bonus for welfare recipients, business tax concessions and a boost to the superannuation of 3.6 million low income earners.

Mr Hockey called on Labor to respect the Coalition's mandate to dismantle the MRRT and associated spending.....

It is time to phone Federal Labor MPs on this list and Labor and Greens Senators on this list and urge them to reject the Minerals Resource Rent Tax Repeal and Other Measures Bill 2013 in its entirety in order to preserve all eight of the provisions the Abbott Government seeks to abolish, in particular those existing superannuation and education provisions.

So why did Prime Minister Abbott phone President Obama?

Sometime during the evening of 11 September 2013 US President Barack Obama telephoned the then Australian Prime Minister-elect, Tony Abbott, and later his office circulated this media release:

The White House
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
September 12, 2013

Readout of the President’s Calls with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Prime Minister-Elect Tony Abbott of Australia

The President called Prime Minister-elect Tony Abbott last night to congratulate him and the Opposition Coalition for his success in the Australia federal election on September 7.  The President and Mr. Abbott discussed their grave concern about the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government, and the viability of the Russian proposal to put all Syrian chemical weapons and related materials fully under international control in order to ensure their verifiable and enforceable destruction.  The President and Prime Minister-elect discussed ways to further strengthen the U.S.-Australia alliance, including by implementing fully the force posture initiatives announced by the United States and Australia in November 2011.  They also discussed the importance of concluding the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations this year.

The President also called outgoing Prime Minister Rudd.  The President thanked Prime Minister Rudd for his friendship, leadership, and unflinching support of the U.S.-Australia relationship, as well as for his strong position on the Syrian regime’s use of chemical weapons on August 21.

Australian media also covered the courtesy call in detail.

However, I’ve yet to hear a word about a second telephone call which Tony Abbott disclosed during a telephone interview with The Washington Post conducted sometime between 20 to 24 October 2013:

He’s a very busy man, and I don’t want to make his life more complicated by demanding an early meeting. He was good enough to take a phone call from me after the election. I expect to visit the United States sometime next year.

Hmmmm.......

Federal Industry Minister demonstrates his contempt for Nationals MP Kevin Hogan

Liberal MP and Federal Industry  Minister Ian Macfarlane apparently wasn’t going to conceal his contempt for a fellow member of the Abbott Government and, unfortunately Page MP Kevin Hogan was obviously unable to find the courage to openly confront him in the media.

Northern Star 24 October 2013:

THE latest survey suggests Richmond Valley residents are against coal-seam gas, but that has not swayed Federal Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane's support for the industry.

Yesterday Mr Macfarlane met with Northern Rivers stakeholders in Canberra including anti-CSG groups, farmers, local dairy and beef industry representatives, local MPs, and Metgasco chief executive Peter Henderson......

"The local member for Page, Kevin Hogan, said to me there were 7000 protesters at a protest - he has over 100,000 people in his electorate - that doesn't sound like a majority to me," Mr Macfarlane said....

Page MP Kevin Hogan said he was happy that all parties had the opportunity to have their say.

2GB falls foul of the Australian Communications and Media Authority - yet again courtesy of radio shock jock Alan Jones

Fifteen hundred people in the Department of Climate Change earning a minimum of 135,000 dollars a year. [Alan Jones, 23 October 2012]

The carnage is everywhere... The Yallourn power station, a major brown coal power station in Victoria’s LaTrobe valley, will today announce that it will scale back electricity production by shutting down one of its four units. Yallourn says the carbon price is driving up operating costs and the government’s renewable energy target is threatening the sustainability of the electricity market. How... for how many months have I been saying this? It says the renewable energy target is suppressing wholesale power prices to uneconomic levels, which will end up costing consumers 53 billion dollars. Yallourn’s decision means that more than 3,000 megawatts of coal-fired power generation capacity has been cut back or closed in recent times.  Queensland’s Stanmore Corporation will close two of its production units. Tony Abbott warned all this would happen and has been vilified in the Parliament for it. Alinta Energy has closed coal-fired production units in South Australia and Delta Energy has closed the Munmorah station in the Hunter Valley. I suppose this is what the government wanted its carbon tax and renewable energy target to achieve. But what are the consequences? Even higher prices and power insecurity. Striking at the heart of our economic strength: cheap energy sources. Are we looking to a future of brownouts, are we? This is just... ugh! Don’t start me. An absolute disgrace. This is the carbon dioxide tax at work. [Alan Jones, 17 October 2012]

Media Release 23 October 2013

2GB breaches accuracy and complaints-handling codes

Harbour Radio Pty Limited, the licensee of Sydney radio station 2GB, breached the accuracy obligations in the Commercial Radio Australia Codes of Practice 2011 in two broadcasts of the Alan Jones Breakfast Show.

Code 2.2(a) requires licensees, in the preparation and presentation of current affairs programs, to use reasonable efforts to ensure that factual material is reasonably supportable as being accurate.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority found 2GB did not make reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy of:

> comments made by Mr Jones on 17 October 2012 about power station closures (Investigation 2962). Here, the sources relied on by 2GB were contradicted by primary material readily available on the website of the owner of the power stations, 
and

> comments made by Mr Jones on 23 October 2012 about salaries paid in the Department of Climate Change (Investigations 2952, 2953 and 2954). Here, there was no evidence of 2GB’s efforts to ensure the accuracy of the comments.

A third complaint about the accuracy of comments made by Mr Jones on 29 October 2012 concerning the NBN and other matters was not upheld (Investigations 2947 and 2960). The ACMA found the comments broadcast were statements of opinion. The ‘accuracy’ obligation in the codes applies only to factual material.

The ACMA also found two breaches by 2GB of its complaints-handling obligations.

In Investigations 2952, 2953 and 2954, 2GB submitted that it was not obliged to respond to a complaint it considered frivolous, vexatious or an abuse of the complaints process. The ACMA did not accept this submission as the Codes require licensees to provide a substantive response to a complaint, including information about the complainant’s right to refer the matter to the ACMA.

In Investigations 2947 and 2960, 2GB submitted that it did not receive the complaint. However, the complainant provided the ACMA with a fax transmission report showing that the complaint had been successfully sent to 2GB.

In these two matters the ACMA found that 2GB was obliged to give a substantive response and breached the code when it failed to do so.

A link to the Investigations can be found here.

The ACMA is in discussions with 2GB about remedial measures.

For more information or to arrange an interview please contact: Emma Rossi, Media Manager, (02) 9334 7719 and 0434 652 063 or media@acma.gov.au.

* Photograph from The Sydney Morning Herald 30 September 2012