Carbon tax

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> Carbon pain registers for businesses

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Government to scrap carbon floor price

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Carbon tax leaves big polluters better off

[ozbob]

Couriermail --> Southeast Queensland mayors ramp up campaign to exclude municipal waste from carbon tax

[ozbob]

http://www.ara.net.au/UserFiles/file/Media%20Releases/Rail-deserves-a-fair-go-on-carbon-pricing%20%281%29.pdf

MEDIA RELEASE

3 April 2013

Rail deserves a fair go on carbon pricing

The rail industry supports a call from the trucking industry today to not extend the carbon price to road transport in 2014, but strongly believes the exemption should equally apply to rail.

Rail companies have been paying $110 million per year since the introduction of the carbon tax in 2012, whilst the road transport industry has been exempt. These costs have been passed onto rail customers and eventually end consumers, with impacts such as higher grocery costs.

"Trains emit one third of the pollution of trucks and yet the rail industry is required to pay $110 million each year whilst one of Australia's largest polluters is given a free pass," Australasian Railway Association CEO Mr Bryan Nye said.

"This has created a perverse incentive where we are actually encouraging the use of a more emissions intensive transport option", Mr Nye continued.

If the $110 MILLION being paid by the rail industry was instead being reinvested in rail, the industry could buy eight new freight trains and eight new passenger train sets each and every year. By 2030 these additional trains would permanently take 13,000 trucks off our roads, 42,500 cars off our roads and the carbon saved would be enough to power 8,000 homes for a year.

"Rail has repeatedly stated its support for action on climate change but the counterintuitive penalty that rail has been slogged with is grossly unfair, and highly illogical", Mr Nye went on to say.

"If carbon pricing is to be effective in reducing pollution, the disproportionate penalty applied to rail needs to be axed, not continued" concluded Mr Nye.

-ENDS-

==============================

More flawed expedient political policy, they are 'dead men walking' this present mob ...

[ozbob]

The Guardian --> Carbon bubble will plunge the world into another financial crisis – report

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Warning as carbon levels hit new high

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Carbon price tax cuts under threat

[ozbob]

Twitter

Robert Dow ‏@Robert_Dow

Kevin Rudd to announce scrapping of carbon tax http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/national/kevin-rudd-to-announce-scrapping-of-carbon-tax/story-fnii5s41-1226678990206 ... #auspol #qldpol #springst #nswpol #sapol #wapol #taspol

[Golliwog]

Scrapping the carbon tax will reportedly cost 800 public servants their jobs! WTF, no wonder so many of us were opposed to it, a tax on business (read job creators) to generate 800 public servants which add no value to the economy, that's over $100m being sucked from the likes of exporters struggling with a record high dollar and record high wages for what, an ideology tax o carbon that was very significantly higher than the world bench mark? Great work Julia!

My understanding isn't that 800 public servants are losing their jobs because the carbon 'tax' is being cut, rather that they're cutting 800 jobs to cover part of the lost revenue from the predicted lower price per tonne under the floating price. These jobs aren't necessarily anything to do with administering the carbon 'tax' but could be any Federal public service position. Correct me if I'm wrong.

[johnnigh]

One real gain, provided the Senate doesn't play silly-buggers (all right, I'm being idealistic), is the clipping of the rort that is FBT treatment of salary sacrifice cars. It's a mildly anti-congestion measure and pushes the urban travel playing field back toward level for PT and active transport.

I fear that it might not make it to fruition. All the whining from the car industry, the salary sacrifice leeches who provide tax avoidance advice and sell cars! The car business has never been stronger, now is a great time to cut some of its subsidies.

Sadly, it's the only undoubtedly good saving measure in today's package. Why no other fossil subsidies weren't cut I've no idea - political power I guess.

[ozbob]

Interesting days in the Senate.

Carbon tax repeal bills have just been defeated.

I am sure it will come back again next week or two for another vote ..

Sydney Morning Herald --> Ricky Muir and Palmer United senators vote with Greens and Labor against repeal of carbon tax

[ozbob]

The Guardian --> Five reasons for the new senate to keep the carbon price

[newbris]

A UK conservative climate minister in the Cameron government reveals what he judges is the Abbott governments level of motivation to pass effective climate policy:

http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2014/s4042037.htm (video)

[ozbob]

Twitter

Australian Senate ‏@AuSenate

The Carbon Tax Repeal bills have been passed by the #Senate

[ozbob]

Twitter

Crikey.com.au ‏@crikey_news

"Now we're back to our Howard-era role as an international greenhouse vandal." @BernardKeane on the carbon tax repeal http://ow.ly/zfvui

The carbon price is dead. Australia thus slips back into its pre-2007 role as an active opponent of serious action on climate change, having removed a functional, effective and low-impact carbon pricing scheme and replaced it with nothing except the promise of a witless policy of handouts to corporate mates.

In doing so, we undermine the chances of meaningful global action on climate change. We're one of the world's most emissions intensive economies — in fact, we're a carbon junkie, hooked on cheap coal for power, and flogging coal to the world even as the price slides and the mines shut. And apart from the last six years, Australia has tried to sabotage global climate action. What we do matters, even if we only account for a small fraction of the world's greenhouse emissions, because when we demonstrate our seriousness in tackling climate change, we increase the chances of countries that don't enjoy our high standards of living also taking action.

Now we're back to our Howard-era role as an international greenhouse vandal ...

[ozbob]

Twitter

smh.com.au ‏@smh

Australia has become the first country in the world to abolish a price on carbon http://ow.ly/zfvS3  #auspol

[ozbob]

Twitter

EVERALD COMPTON ‏@EVERALDATLARGE

#CarbonTax repeal a free kick to all #polluters who will profit mightily as they ravage our nation. Will go down in history as a disgrace

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Who wins, who loses when the carbon tax goes?

[ozbob]

The Conversation --> Carbon tax repealed: experts respond

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> World's media respond to carbon tax repeal

[ozbob]

The Globe and Mail --> What do these PMs know that economists don't?

[ozbob]

Twitter

chris murphy @chrismurphys

As we face the global gloom of no emissions scheme Only 18% polled @SMH want Carbon Tax gone. #auspol

[James]

Twitter

chris murphy @chrismurphys

As we face the global gloom of no emissions scheme Only 18% polled @SMH want Carbon Tax gone. #auspol

Either the Australian population have very short memory spans or the poll from the left-leaning Fairfax publication The Sydney Morning Herald is experiencing an example of poor sample space i.e. left leaning voters who are more likely to be active in voting and commenting against Abbott's actions, rather than a reflection on wider society's opinion (which I'd say is more 50/50 at least).