Australia backs away from carbon trading

July 08, 2010 10:38 am | Updated 10:38 am IST - Sydney

Australia will not bring in a carbon trading scheme this year or next and will not do so until there is popular support for putting a price on carbon.

In comments reported Thursday, Prime Minister Julia Gillard also rejected calls from the Greens that the Government impose a carbon levy as an interim measure until a carbon trading scheme can be introduced.

“I’m holding to the decision that was announced by the government that we will review in 2012 the nature of the community consensus in Australia about the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme,” Ms. Gillard said.

“The announcements of the former prime minister, Kevin Rudd, about the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme stand.” Mss Gillard, who deposed Mr. Rudd in a party coup June 24, had helped persuade Rudd to abandon plans for carbon trading after the failure of the Copenhagen climate conference in December.

Mr. Rudd’s emissions trading scheme was to have started last week, but was effectively shelved indefinitely in May.

Ms. Gillard, who will call a parliamentary election later this year, does not want to seek another 3-year term until Labour has a new policy on tackling global warming.

This week she is expected to announce measures that would extend government support for solar panels, wind farms and geothermal projects.

The opposition Liberal Party, which rejected carbon trading out of hand, is committed to what it calls “direct action” on reducing greenhouse gases, with the government paying for pollution reduction measures.

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