Get out of the way Kean calls out Canberra over climate

NSW Energy and Environment Minister Matt Kean has again attacked his Coalition counterparts over climate inaction and says the federal government needs to show leadership or risk losing the next election.

Mr Kean, who has also broken ranks previously over the link between global warming and worsening bushfire weather, has used a speech to this week’s Better Futures Forum to urge Australians not to accept inaction over tackling “the challenge of our time”.

NSW Energy and Environment Minister Matt Kean says Australia can’t just expect other nations to do the hard work to cut greenhouse gas emissions.Credit:Nick Moir

“We need to send a message to all leaders in every part of our society that failing to deliver on the promise of what we can be is not an option,” Mr Kean said according to a copy of his speech obtained by the Herald and The Age.

In the speech, scheduled for Tuesday morning ahead of the three-day forum, the Liberal state minister said everyone had a responsibility in “remaking our politics”, including when it came to elections.

“It is our responsibility when we purchase things for our homes, when we choose where to invest our superannuation, when we decide who we bank with, and when we decide how to vote at the ballot box,” Mr Kean, who has spoken out before about the need to break down the partisan divide on climate inaction, said.

His comments, which will follow opening remarks to the forum by former United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon, come a week after the release of renewed warnings about planetary heating by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Mr Kean did not name Scott Morrison but made a veiled reference to the Prime Minister’s comments that it was up to developing nations to cut emissions and pledges from other countries did “not make a lick of difference” if China didn’t cut pollution.

“Complaining that it is too hard is not a solution. Saying it is up to others to come up with a plan is a cop-out,” Mr Kean said. “The community expects our leaders to get on with it, or get out of the way.”

Federal Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor was approached to speak at the forum but organisers were told he was not available, Lisa Cliff, a program manager said.

Mr Taylor was approached for comment about his participation and the Prime Minister’s office for comment about the thrust of Mr Kean’s speech.

This week’s event will highlight how citizens, businesses and governments in Australia are ramping up efforts to cut emissions now rather than waiting for mid-century to reach net-zero emissions, Ms Cliff said.

“This next decade is really critical,” she said. “We need to be at least halving our emissions” by 2030.

The federal government’s ambition has been unchanged since the run-up to the 2015 Paris Agreement when former prime minister Tony Abbott pledged Australia would cut 2005 emissions by 26-28 per cent by 2030.

Mr Taylor has repeatedly said Australia will “meet and beat” that 2030 goal, a claim this week’s gathering will argue means the country can raise its target in time for November’s climate summit in Scotland.

Alok Sharma, the president of that summit, is due to address the forum near its conclusion on Thursday.

The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.

Peter Hannam writes on environment issues for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

Share this post