Emissions policy is under attack from all sides. We’ve been here before, and it rarely ends well

Federal energy minister Josh Frydenberg is battling to steer a course for his National Energy Guarantee (NEG) through choppy political waters, ahead of a crucial meeting this Friday on whether to adopt the policy.

Josh Frydenberg and Malcolm Turnbull both know that
 the history books make for uncomfortable reading
when it comes to emissions policy.

Since 2014 and the demise of Julia Gillard’s carbon pricing scheme, Australia has been in a well-documented period of policy paralysis (although “mayhem” may be more accurate). Former prime minister Tony Abbott signed off on a 26-28% emissions reduction target to take to the 2015 Paris climate summit (despite later claiming to have been misled by his advisors), and his successor Malcolm Turnbull ratified it as part of the resulting global treaty.

In late 2016, Frydenberg’s suggestion that an emissions intensity scheme could help meet the target survived for a mere 24 hours before dying in a Sydney fish market. Next, the Clean Energy Target proposed by chief scientist Alan Finkel proved too hard for the Coalition to get behind.

Read Marc Hudson’s thoughts on The Conversation (also published in today’s Age) - “Emissions policy is under attack from all sides. We’ve been here before, and it rarely ends well.”