Andrew Bragg’s big call on political future amid Coalition chaos

Liberal senator Andrew Bragg says he will leave the frontbench if the party rescinds Australia’s commitment to the Paris Agreement as the embattled Coalition prepares to finalize energy policy.

Internal divisions within the Liberal Party over the contentious emissions target are rife; moderates want to maintain net zero emissions by 2050 (partly to target inner-city seats won by Labor and Teals at the last election) and the right wants to abandon the target, claiming it is an unaffordable way of delivering the energy transition.

The Nationals announced last week that they were officially abandoning net zero, increasing pressure from Sussan Ley to deliver a policy that would reconcile the divide.

Asked on Sunday morning whether the “right thing” was to stay in the front row and change his mind, or to resign, the opposition housing spokesman told the ABC: “You can’t change your fundamental views.

“So you can’t do that: ‘Here are my principles, but if you don’t like them I have them.’

“In my view, Australia needs to be in (the Paris Agreement) and then we need to try and find a way to do net zero better than Labor.

“This is better for jobs, better for industry and better for decarbonisation.”

Asked whether he would exit the frontbench if the Liberals did not remain in the international climate agreement and commit to net zero emissions, Mr Bragg said: “Of course, but I don’t think we will ever leave Paris.

“We are a government party, right? We are not a party on the sidelines, we are not those who live on the sidelines.

“Most Australians want us to play our fair part in reducing emissions, so I don’t see us leaving the Paris Agreement.”

Australia signed the Paris Agreement in 2016, becoming one of more than 170 countries to agree to the international agreement’s long-term goals, including significant emissions reductions to limit global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

To achieve this and prevent the worst effects of climate change, global emissions need to reach net zero by around 2050.

On the possibility of the Liberals adopting a policy that abandons net zero altogether, Mr Bragg said he could not understand how the party room would take such a position.

“A fatwa cannot be given in two words. This is the international standard,” he said.

“Trying to act like you won’t say two words is absolutely ridiculous.

“Australia is part of the international community.

“It is actually Labour’s disastrous energy policies that are driving up electricity prices, not the net zero deal.”

He said abandoning net zero would make Australia an international outlier alongside “Azerbaijan, Iran, Syria and a few other bad guys”.

“Australia has never been with these people before,” he said.

Net zero ‘challenge’

Opposition energy spokesman Dan Tehan has rejected claims that the opposition’s net zero platform has been controlled by the National Party, which has triggered months of chaotic infighting within the troubled Coalition.

The Liberals are expected to take a unified stance on the controversial emissions target and set out a timetable for the Coalition to announce a formal energy policy platform next week.

But the National Party agreed to scrap net zero earlier this month, preempting the results of the Liberal Party’s policy review, raising questions about whether its junior Coalition partner is trying to take over the net zero debate.

Asked whether the Nationals were “holding a gun to their heads” on policy, as one Liberal supporter claimed, Mr Tehan told Sky News it was part of the Coalition’s agreed process.

“Five months ago, the decision was made that the National Party would go through its own process, we would go through ours and then come together,” he said.

“I respected that from day one.”

Internal divisions within the Liberals also pose a particular challenge for Mr Tehan, who is leading the review process into the party’s energy and emissions reduction policy.

Asked whether he could reconcile those for and against the controversial policy, Mr Tehan said: “I understand both points of view and ultimately what we need to be able to do is come together under one policy.

“I’ve always said it would be like threading a needle, but that’s the real challenge and what we need to do as the Liberal Party and the Coalition is to eventually come together and unite behind a policy.”

Mr Tehan also confirmed a key priority for the Liberals was working with state governments to sustain coal-fired generation, which he said was “vital to win”. [energy] prices dropped” and added “more gas to our system.”

“What I’m saying is, we need to make sure that we’re sweating those coal assets, continuing to sweat those coal assets, and also being able to get more gas into the system at a much faster rate.”