The Nationals move to scrap net zero policy at Federal Council meeting
The National Party voted to remove net zero from their policy platform; Federal MPs are expected to follow suit ahead of wider Coalition talks on energy policy on Sunday.
The party’s motion to “drop support for a net zero mission” was passed at the Federal Council meeting in Canberra on Saturday.
Passing the law does not bind the party’s federal MPs to do the same, but the outcome is expected to be similar at the caucus meeting on Sunday morning.
Saturday’s motion does not eliminate all support for emissions reductions; The party is voting to support “a flexible policy framework that delivers emissions reductions while growing and protecting key industries.”
Before the vote, National Party leader David Littleproud told members the decision was “perfectly sensible”.
“Today you will be discussing a decision, a very sensible decision, to make sure we have a common sense solution for our energy and our climate. We believe in preserving and protecting our climate and our environment. There are practical ways,” he said.
“We’re not moving away from reducing emissions, but we can do it better, more fairly and more cheaply. As the world turns from an arbitrary target to using common sense, we can align ourselves with the world by ensuring they don’t destroy their economies.”
“We can do this calmly and thoughtfully, and we are working with our coalition partners.
“And I made it clear to Sussan Ley that while we respect the sovereignty of their chamber, we ask her to respect the sovereignty of our chamber as well. And we have thoughtfully come together to work together. And that is the effort that we will begin at 9 a.m. tomorrow morning.”
Net Zero has become a growing sore point both within the wider Coalition and within the two parties.
Since becoming opposition leader, Ms Ley has refused to take a concrete stance on whether Australia should seek to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
Instead, he pledged to carry out a general policy review, arguing it was necessary after the Coalition’s defeat in May’s federal election.
While some moderates within the Liberal Party are reportedly content to maintain a watered-down version of the policy, many high-profile MPs, including Andrew Hastie, who is now in the background, have taken a clear opposition stance.
Barnaby Joyce stated that the National Team’s support for Net Zero was an important reason behind the decision to take a break from the party hall.
“Our stance of continuing to support net zero at the great divide and harm it does to my constituents, small businesses, the environment, the poor, Australia’s defense and creating hatred among lifelong friends in my community makes it untenable to continue in the National Party Chamber in Canberra,” he said in a statement last month.
More to come
