The Advertiser
By: Simon Jenkins, Canberra
Federal government climate change adviser Professor Ross Garnaut remains critical of some aspects of the proposed carbon pollution reduction scheme, but says the legislation should be passed.
Professor Garnaut has largely endorsed changes to the scheme, now the subject of a Senate inquiry.
However, he remains critical of some parts.
In relation to trade-exposed industries, he told the inquiry in Canberra yesterday it was crucial to "make it clear that we are going to get rid of the system of assistance . . . when the rationale for it disappears''.
He said there were three significant steps to making the emissions trading scheme beneficial. The first was to put back on the table the condition of a 25 per cent reduction in emissions by 2020.
"The Government's done that and . . . it now would be clearly a positive for this Bill to be passed into law,'' he said.
But Professor Garnaut dismissed concerns by the Minerals Council of Australia suggesting the Government's minimum target of reducing emissions by 5 per cent of 2000 levels would cost 24,000 mining jobs over the next 10 years.
"There's no reason to think that a regime of ambitious emissions reduction will lead to a net fall in jobs,'' he said.