‘Rioting is not one of the three Rs': Liberals say protesting students should give up ice creams

Liberal MPs have attacked the "rioting" students who took a day off school to protest the government's climate change policies, with one challenging them to swear off ice-cream to lower emissions.

Students hold placards during Friday's climate protest in Melbourne.CREDIT:

An estimated 15,000 students marched in cities and regional towns around the country on Friday - despite warnings they could face disciplinary action for not attending school.

Liberal senator James McGrath identified a spelling error in a placard held by one student at the protest, circling it in a photograph he posted on his Facebook page. The sign, which targeted Prime Minister Scott Morrison directly, misspelt "jealous" as “jelous".

Read the story from The Age by Michael Koziol - “‘Rioting is not one of the three Rs': Liberals say protesting students should give up ice creams.”

(Those critical of the protesting students just don’t get it - Robert McLean)

Finkel Review is not about forecasts, it is about making informed choices

The Finkel Review delivered an energy system blueprint with a clear objective: secure and reliable electricity, at the lowest cost, while Australia moves to a lower emissions future. Regrettably, the current political debate seems more likely to deliver the opposite outcome: less secure and reliable electricity, at higher cost.

Finkel Review encourages a smarter choice.

There is justifiable concern about electricity prices, security of supply, and the future of the coal-fired power stations that have underpinned our energy system for decades.

The economic modelling of the Finkel Review provides forecasts of what might change under various assumptions. Unfortunately, the debate over the Review’s recommendations has focused on the forecasts rather than the substance of what drives investment, prices and emissions. Such debate does little more than support the view of JK Galbraith, who famously said that “The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable.”

Read the Grattan Institute story by Tony Wood - “Finkel Review is not about forecasts, it is about making informed choices.”