Tomorrow Chief Scientist Alan Finkel is delivering a report that could potentially split the Liberal Party. Turnbull was tossed out by the party in 2009 because he supported the bank-friendly emissions trading scheme. Now the debate is back again in a different guise — called a LET scheme (low emissions target), or a CET scheme (Clean Energy Target). Details are scant at the moment. On the plus side, it appears it’s not necessarily a trading scheme (code for banker driver fiat currency) and it’s aimed at “emissions” directly instead of “renewables” (which makes it slightly more direct and gives the market a tiny bit more freedom, except of course, the market can’t choose “Nukes”.). On the downside, it’s still a pointless waste of billions of dollars in a futile attempt to slow storms for our grandchildren. If it succeeds in reducing emissions, it will reduce airborne plant fertilizer.
Split coming in the Liberal Party again?
Tony Abbott has warned the federal government it would be making a big mistake if it adopted a low emissions target that made it hard to build new, more efficient coal-fired power stations. The former prime minister expressed his “anxiety” around reports concerning chief scientist Alan Finkel’s review of the national energy sector. His worry is that the Finkel report, due to be delivered on Friday, will recommend a scenario whereby renewable energy is at 70 per cent by 2030.
Three years to close your losing business?
There is talk of a new rule to make coal fired stations give three years warning before they give up. How’s that going to work?
The nation’s biggest coal-fired power stations will have to give at least three years notice of any plans to shut down, as part of a strict new rule that seeks to avoid the sudden closure of vital electricity supplies. … will recommend the tough new rules in order to avoid a repeat of closures that have hurt the national electricity market.
Will companies that start losing money want to stick around and spend more to try to fix them, or just give up sooner? Will investors in Australian electricity “price in that risk” and pay less for electricity assets from now on? Perhaps companies will notify the market they are closing, then “see what happens” and not close — we could have the certainty of long standing constant closure orders so that companies retain the right to say at any time — “It’s over, and we gave you three years warning”.
Libs pick up an election losing Labor-type policy, Labor says “that’s OK”
Labor is offering to keep an open mind about the Liberals adopting long Labor policy. How “generous”.
Shorten clears ground for Climate War Talks
The Australian, RHIAN DEUTROM
The Labor leader has written to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to promise the opposition will approach Chief Scientist Alan Finkel’s review recommendations with an open mind, reports AAP.
The answer is always a scheme that costs us money and makes an unmeasurable difference to the climate:
Australia’s chief scientist, Alan Finkel, will hand down his long-awaited energy reform report to the Council of Australian Governments tomorrow, which is likely to favour a low emissions target scheme (LET).
Will they repeal all the other schemes, or quadruple-up the complexity?
The two major parties are closer than ever to agreeing on the LET, with Bill Shorten this week writing to the Prime Minister conceding that he would be willing to accept a LET, despite advocating for a tougher emissions intensity scheme (EIS).
Mr Butler said he hoped Mr Shorten’s “olive branch” would mark the end of the political dispute over climate change.
What “olive branch”? It looks like the Libs adopting a policy that helped the Labor Party lose the last two elections:
“We’ve heard very clearly from the business community that they’re concerned about the energy crisis emerging,” Mr Butler told ABC’s RN program this morning.
The energy crisis is the creation of crazy regulation to use power sources to change the climate. The answer is the free market.
“Expert after expert is telling us that there is a lack of certainty around energy policy so we have to do all we can to sit down and resolve that with the government”.
The “lack of certainty” is solved if the government gets out of the energy market, not by playing more politics with it.
The fakery includes describing what voters rejected, as “the centre”:
According to Mr Butler, the party’s offer to move to centre on climate change would come with conditions.
Studies show just over half the Australian population is skeptical that mankind can control the weather by changing lightglobes and putting up windmills. Australians want to ‘save the planet’ but they don’t want to pay much for it, and 80% don’t donate to it either.
This could split the Libs:
Former prime minister Tony Abbott has proved a staunch opponent of an LET, warning yesterday that the policy would eliminate high-efficiency coal-fired power stations.
“The Liberal Party has to be the party of cheap power, let Labor be the party of expensive power,” he told 2GB radio yesterday.
Repeat after me. Wholesale coal fired electricity is 3 to 4c a KWhr. Why is it illegal for coal fired power to be sold in a free market to Australians who want it?