Federal Labor critical of Coalition's coal study, while not ruling out blocking mines and power plants

The Federal Opposition has accused the Coalition of opening the door to subsidising new coal-fired power stations, as rogue Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce argued cutting carbon emissions was being prioritised ahead of affordable power.

Barnaby Joyce has defended his stance on coal.

The Federal Government announced $6 million would be spent on two feasibility studies for new electricity generation projects, including a coal-fired power plant at Collinsville in north Queensland.

Tensions were high in the Coalition party room on Tuesday between conservative Nationals MPs, who wanted the Government to focus more on coal, and moderate Liberals who believed more needed to be done to tackle climate change.

Fresh from his unsuccessful tilt for the Nationals' leadership, Barnaby Joyce said there are significant government subsidies for renewable energy projects across the country and coal-fired plants should not be discounted.

Read the ABC News storey Matthew Doran - “Federal Labor critical of Coalition's coal study, while not ruling out blocking mines and power plants.”

G7 fossil fuel subsidies worth $100bn a year to industry, study find

The UK has been accused of trying to “fudge” how much it spends subsidising coal mining and fossil fuel use despite its pledge to phase out environmentally harmful subsidies by 2020. 

Britain has pledged to support the extraction of oil and gas in the North Sea .

The country ranked first on its commitment to end fossil fuel subsidies but last on transparency in a new study led by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) which ranks each G7 country on ending support for the production and use of oil, gas and coal ahead of a group meeting which starts in Canada on Friday.

The UK does not provide national reports on its fiscal support for fossil fuel production and consumption and the government has repeatedly denied providing fossil fuel subsidies. However, the report states the UK is providing subsidies in the form of tax breaks for oil and gas exploration in the North Sea and the decommissioning of oil.

Read the ClimateHome News story by Chloé Farand -  “G7 fossil fuel subsidies worth $100bn a year to industry, study finds.”