The Daily Telegraph
By: Malcolm Farr, National Political Editor
For the first time Australia will have a bipartisan commitment to make sure a fifth of our electricity comes from renewable power sources.
A historic but troubled agreement between the Opposition and the Government will lead to more solar, wind and geothermal power over the next 11 years than ever before.
The deal was struck yesterday to demand that 20 per cent of power come from renewables, as opposed to coal and oil fuels, by 2020.
It was estimated the renewable target would push up household electricity costs by less than 4 per cent but this rise of about $8 a year would be spread over 10 years.
The emphasis on renewables will begin on January 1, 2010. The long-term objective was to reduce extra costs from an emissions trading scheme, which would penalise power from fossil fuels.
The bipartisan agreement took only a few days to reach. However, it was not expected to be duplicated when negotiations start on the Government's main climate change bill, the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme legislation, already rejected once by the Senate.
The Renewable Energy Target had been originally in the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme legislation until the Opposition last weekend demanded it be treated separately.
The Government obliged when it appeared it was resisting for purely political reasons, which was why the Opposition was now claiming a points victory on the issue.
"The Government should now adopt the same common sense in negotiating for its proposed emissions trading scheme,'' Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull said.
"The outcome demonstrates the economically and environmentally beneficial outcomes that can result from good faith negotiations between the Government and the Coalition.''
But the Greens argued too much leeway had been given to the big polluters to justify the deal.