PLEA Network

26 October 2021. Renew Economy:  “A joke:” Morrison’s net zero plan has net zero detail, and no change to policies. The Morrison government has unveiled its “plan” for achieving net zero emissions by 2050 that includes no new policies, no changes to Australia’s 2030 target, and is predicated on unspecified technology breakthroughs and could result in Australia spend billions on international offsets. Announcing on Tuesday that the Morrison government would commit to a formal zero net emissions target for 2050 – after weeks of strained negotiations with the Nationals – prime minister Scott Morrison and federal energy minister Angus Taylor’s “plan” delivered very little detail on how that target will be achieved. A commitment to a zero net emissions target for 2050 is considered the minimum credible commitment expected from developed countries ahead of the COP26 talks in Glasgow. But Morrison and Taylor’s plan, in fact, made very clear that there would be no substantial changes to government policy, and no new legislation, explicitly saying that it was ‘based on existing policies’. The net zero target would not be enshrined in law, there would be no “mandates” to reduce emissions, and no increase to the 2030 target. The government’s plan is heavily reliant on unspecified advancements in technologies across the electricity sector, agriculture, transport and industry which may emerge in its “Technology Investment Roadmap” – to achieve a further 40 per cent reduction in Australian emissions. Read more here