Sydney, 27 November 2015 - Greenpeace has welcomed Labor leader Bill Shorten’s promise to reduce Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent by 2030 and achieve net zero emissions by 2050 is a good first step, but says more needs to be done.
Dominique Rowe, the Head of Campaigns for Greenpeace Australia Pacific said:
“Bill Shorten and the Labor Party are finally showing some much-needed leadership where Australia’s emissions target is concerned, since the government’s paltry target of 26 to 28 percent by 2030 is an international embarrassment.
“However, we want to see a comprehensive policy that offers positive solutions, and firm commitments to achieving those solutions. What we don’t want is a round of political point scoring on the very serious and pressing issue of climate change.
“Climate change is a global problem. It’s clear that in order to meet these targets, fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas will need to stay in the ground. Any serious commitment to combating climate change must also include a credible plan on this issue.
“Greenpeace is therefore calling for a transition to 100 percent renewable energy for all by 2050, and we are taking this demand to the Paris climate talks.
“Many countries are already showing this kind of leadership. This month alone, we’ve seen the UK government announce that it will phase out its coal plants in the next ten years, and yesterday the Dutch Parliament adopted a resolution calling on the government to make a plan to phase out all coal power plants.
“Australia is lagging on climate change action where it once was a leader, and we need to see sustained courage on this issue from our politicians.
“We already know that Australians think the government should do much more about climate change. This weekend, thousands of people around the country will be joining climate marches to express their support for more action; political leaders should be listening.”
“However, we want to see a comprehensive policy that offers positive solutions, and firm commitments to achieving those solutions. What we don’t want is a round of political point scoring on the very serious and pressing issue of climate change.
“Climate change is a global problem. It’s clear that in order to meet these targets, fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas will need to stay in the ground. Any serious commitment to combating climate change must also include a credible plan on this issue.
“Greenpeace is therefore calling for a transition to 100 percent renewable energy for all by 2050, and we are taking this demand to the Paris climate talks.
“Many countries are already showing this kind of leadership. This month alone, we’ve seen the UK government announce that it will phase out its coal plants in the next ten years, and yesterday the Dutch Parliament adopted a resolution calling on the government to make a plan to phase out all coal power plants.
“Australia is lagging on climate change action where it once was a leader, and we need to see sustained courage on this issue from our politicians.
“We already know that Australians think the government should do much more about climate change. This weekend, thousands of people around the country will be joining climate marches to express their support for more action; political leaders should be listening.”