Labor and Greens in disarray on carbon price

18 May, 2011 by

More spin

Hands up who didn’t see this coming. As every political commentator in Australia is correctly stating, Labor is wedged between alienating their core vote by setting a carbon price too high, and the Greens by setting a carbon price too low.

Too high, and Labor will lose in a landslide at the next election. Too low, and the Greens will abandon their cosy little deal with Labor and force an election sooner – which they will lose anyway. I think that popcorn moment is approaching:

DEEP divisions have emerged between the government and the Greens over the starting price of Julia Gillard’s carbon tax as negotiations enter their final weeks.

After a meeting of the Prime Minister’s multi-party climate change committee, Greens leader Bob Brown seized on a report to be released today suggesting a carbon price of $40 a tonne may be needed to force electricity generators to switch from coal to gas.

But Climate Change Minister Greg Combet declared after the meeting that “from the government’s standpoint, it’s going to be well south of $40 a tonne and no matter what the starting price, there will be generous household assistance”.

With the committee expected to finalise its position on the carbon pricing mechanism ahead of an announcement late next month or in early July, Mr Combet conceded the government and the Greens continued to have “policy differences”, but they were “in good faith endeavouring to negotiate on those issues”.

Hilarious. More spin than a launderette. At least Tony Abbott can see through the fog:

As the MPCCC met in Canberra, Tony Abbott toured the Geelong Ford plant, saying a carbon tax of $30 a tonne would increase the cost of a car by $412. He dismissed Mr Combet’s assurances that the starting price for the carbon tax would be less than $40, saying the tax would rise every year.

“The point of this tax is that whatever level it starts at, it’s going to go up and up and up, and I say to the Australian people: you trust this Prime Minister at your peril,” the Opposition Leader said.

“Never forget the Prime Minister said six days before the election there ‘will be no carbon tax under the government I lead’, (and) within a couple of months ‘yes there will be a carbon tax’. So this is a government which is both incompetent and untrustworthy.” (source)

True. So true.

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Labor ship hits iceberg – sinking fast

16 May, 2011 by

Goodship Gillard

She’s holed below the waterline, Cap’n. Six compartments are flooded and it is a mathematical certainty that she’ll be heading to the bottom of the ocean in no time at all. But not to worry, the carbon tax lifeboat will save the government, just you wait and see…

SUPPORT for Julia Gillard has plunged after voters gave their lowest rating to Labor’s fourth budget, the overall worst reaction in almost 20 years, leaving the Prime Minister’s personal standing below that of Kevin Rudd when he was removed as leader.

Voter approval of Ms Gillard is the lowest it has been since she became Prime Minister last June. Tony Abbott is as close to her as preferred prime minister as he has ever been and closer than he ever was to Mr Rudd.

According to the latest Newspoll survey, conducted exclusively for The Australian at the weekend, the Coalition’s primary vote rose to a six-year high of 46 per cent to Labor’s unchanged 33 per cent, giving a two-party preferred calculation of 54 to 46 per cent.

Satisfaction with Ms Gillard as prime minister dropped to a record low for her of 34 per cent compared with 38 per cent before the budget, and dissatisfaction rose six points to 55 per cent, her highest level of dissatisfaction. (source)

Radio Operator – send out an SOS.

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Abbott was right: Swan's budget a DUD

15 May, 2011 by

Swan's budget

And the electorate agrees with that assessment. More good news for Labor, as the public response to the budget is examined:

THE Federal Budget has crashed and appears to have done more damage to Labor’s credibility than help revive its political fortunes.

The first poll to measure the national mood following the May 10 Budget – conducted by The Daily Telegraph –Galaxy – revealed fewer than a third of Australians believed it was good for the economy.

Two of the Budget’s key “spend and save” measures were soundly rejected.

Support for the $300 million digital set-top box scheme for pensioners was lowest among those it sought to benefit, with more than 60 per cent of older Australians saying they didn’t want it.

Cuts to family tax payments for 40,000 families also struck a raw nerve, with 47 per cent of Australians rejecting the idea that families earning $150,000 were rich.

According to the results of a poll, conducted on May 11 and May 12, just 28 per cent of voters thought the Budget would be good for the Australian economy, with 39 per cent saying it would be bad.

Only 11 per cent said the Budget confirmed Labor as a sound economic manager.

The negative assessment marked a dramatic shift from last year, when 43 per cent of voters rated the 2010 Budget as good for the economy. Even among Labor voters, only 47 per cent believed this Budget was positive.

The results will come as [a] blow to Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s hopes the Budget would inject life back into the Government, as Tony Abbott ramps up the case for a fresh election on the basis there is no mandate for a carbon tax.

“Wayne Swan’s fourth Budget has failed to impress voters and done little to bolster Labor’s economic credentials,” Galaxy CEO David Briggs said.

“It’s not just the Budget – it goes beyond that. It is a reflection that Labor are on the nose and it doesn’t matter what they do.

“It suggests a growing disenchantment with a Government that has failed to inspire confidence and is looking increasingly like an administration trying to muddle through as best it can.”

Read it here.

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Labor Nightmare: The Return of Rudd?

5 April, 2011 by

Horror movie in real life…

Kevin Rudd was in good form on Q & A last night, breaching cabinet confidentiality to reveal that senior Labor figures were against an ETS, and leaving open the possibility (heaven forbid) of another go at the leadership. Another great day for Labor!

THE Coalition has seized on Kevin Rudd’s admission that he got it wrong when he dumped his emissions trading scheme, painting the comments as a job application for a second tilt at the Labor leadership.

The Foreign Minister’s breach of cabinet confidentiality – in which he admitted some senior ministers wanted the ETS permanently killed off – has also been used by the opposition to accuse Labor of hypocrisy over the issue.

Opposition treasury spokesman Joe Hockey said there was “no doubt” Mr Rudd’s comments were an appeal to his backbenchers for another go at the leadership.

“I would suspect Kevin Rudd is applying to be prime minister, there’s no doubt about that, no doubt at all,” he told ABC radio.

Mr Rudd admitted on last night’s Q&A program that shelving his ETS was a costly error.

While admitting his mistake, he said he had resisted the urgings of some cabinet members who had argued for it to be axed completely. Others wanted to stick to the existing timetable.

…

Deputy opposition leader Julie Bishop, who appeared on the panel with Mr Rudd, said his comments provided an extraordinary insight into divisions within the Labor cabinet.

“He said that last night, that there were some who wanted it dumped for all time. He was clearly indicating that that was Julia Gillard and Wayne Swan,” she told The Australian Online.

“I think he relished the opportunity to set the record straight. That’s what it appeared to me.

“I think that Julia Gillard’s hypocrisy is just too much for him. And he’s outraged by it. That’s what it appeared to me to be, that he was speaking out over her hypocrisy.”

Ms Bishop said Mr Rudd had clearly broken cabinet confidentiality and had “never seen such an open discussion of otherwise confidential deliberations”. (source)

Just when you think it can’t get any worse for Labor. The Return of Rudd – a horror movie in real life.

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New South Wales whacks Labor

27 March, 2011 by

Onya

Difficult to know whether it was NSW Labor’s hopelessness or Julia’s carbon tax that was more to blame. Probably both, in equal measure.

BARRY O’Farrell has become the 42nd premier of NSW in the biggest landslide seen in modern Australian political history.

Kristina Keneally stepped down as leader after conceding defeat to the Coalition in an electoral rout which ends 16 years of Labor government and may leave the ALP with just 20 seats, down from 50.

With a 17 per cent swing and a surge in its primary vote even beyond its expectations, the Coalition is set to win about 70 lower house seats, Labor 20 and independents the remaining three.

That sort of majority will carry the Coalition, which has governed in NSW for only seven of the past 35 years, through to the 2019 election at least.

The Nationals had a highly successful night, and are expected to pick up five seats for a total of 18.

Nationals beat sitting independents in three seats – Dubbo, Port Macquarie and Tamworth – and were likely to take Monaro from Labor’s Steve Whan and, in an extraordinary result, Bathurst, with a swing of 37 per cent.

In a typically self-effacing victory speech, Mr O’Farrell stressed the achievements of his staff and parliamentary team, rather than his own efforts, and remained focused on practical issues of service delivery and infrastructure.

“We are determined to end the rorts, to restore confidence in the government in this state once again,” he added.

But his speech at the Parramatta Leagues Club would have sent a shudder through the Gillard government as he pledged he would “take the fight up to Canberra” on the proposed carbon tax.

Early figures from the upper house also indicate Mr O’Farrell will have no problem passing his legislation.

Apart from Labor, the big losers are the Greens, who look unlikely to win either Balmain or Marrickville, the two inner-western Sydney seats they were tipped to secure. (source)

Time to start putting New South Wales back together again.

 

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Greens/Labor split on compensation

19 March, 2011 by

Enjoy the show!

It was always inevitable that when the details of the carbon tax are finally hammered out, Julia Gillard would find herself torn between keeping her working class core electorate happy by helping businesses offset the cost of the tax, and appeasing the Greens with their urban band of latte-sipping trendies, desperate to punish humanity for sins against the planet. The popcorn moment comes ever closer:

DIVISIONS between Labor and the Greens on industry assistance levels in the carbon pricing plan have deepened.

Greens leader Bob Brown yesterday declared he would not accept “gifts” to big polluters and his deputy Christine Milne directly contradicted Climate Change Minister Greg Combet as the party toughened its position on compensation to emissions-intensive trade-exposed industries.

…

Mr Combet said Professor Garnaut “also endorsed the emissions-intensive trade-exposed assistance style of package that the government formulated under the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme in the last parliament”.

But speaking before the government’s multi-party climate change committee met yesterday, Senator Brown said the Greens wanted a “principled” approach to compensation from the start, arguing “you either compensate people on the basis of information which is reliable, or you make them a gift”.

…

After the MPCCC meeting Senator Milne emerged and directly disagreed with Mr Combet’s assertion that Professor Garnaut had endorsed the Rudd package on assistance to emissions intensive trade exposed industries.

“No that isn’t how I read it,” she said. “Professor Garnaut has made it clear that he supports a principled approach.”

The harder line from the Greens came in the same week as Julia Gillard moved to distance herself from the minor party, declaring that only Labor could deliver a decision to price carbon and describing the Greens as being at the “extremes” of Australian politics. (source)

At least Gillard’s right on that point.

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Government campaign of climate misinformation on the way?

14 March, 2011 by

Think propaganda

I guess that would finally finish off Gillard and her crooked Government. Spending tax-payer dollars to promote a policy that was explicitly ruled out before the election won’t go down too well, I would suspect. Excellent. Bring it on.

AUSTRALIANS face bombardment with glossy brochures, emotive TV ads and subliminal “below the line” marketing under a ready-made strategy to sell the government’s proposed carbon tax.

A communications plan drawn up for the dumped carbon pollution reduction scheme urged a “call to action” campaign to boost public support for cutting carbon emissions.

The plan reveals a $6.5 million mailout of 6-8 page information booklets was under consideration by the former Rudd government to win public support for its climate response.

It also recommended a $7-$20 million media buy to explain to households the need for climate action, which would cost them $4-$5 a week more in electricity bills and $2 more a week for gas.

The December 2009 document, obtained by the opposition under freedom of information laws, urged a multi-pronged campaign worth up to $30 million to address an “information gap” in the community.

“It is important to note that advertising will need to be a core component of the communications program,” the plan said.

It said “below the line activities”, involving public relations specialists and digital marketers, should also play a role. (source)

Can’t wait, and I bet neither can you…

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Excellent: Gillard to "push ahead with carbon price"

8 March, 2011 by

The socialist and the Marxist, or is it the other way round? Whatever…

Great news. I think we can reasonably confidently say: RIP Julia. You will go the way of Rudd, and Labor will be consigned to electoral oblivion for a generation:

Prime Minister Julia Gillard is determined to fight on with her controversial carbon tax, despite a new poll showing Labor’s primary vote has hit rock-bottom.

Labor’s primary vote plunged to 30 per cent in the latest Newspoll, with the Coalition leading 54 to 46 per cent in two-party terms.

Ms Gillard told reporters in Washington she had always understood arguing for a tough economic reform such as pricing carbon was “going to be a big debate”.

“It’s going to be a hard debate – but it’s one that I am determined to win,” she said.

Not a chance now, I’m afraid. You’re sunk. And then another big misrepresentation:

“We shouldn’t try to lead the world, but neither can we afford to limp behind. We have a high emissions economy.”

What she means (but cleverly doesn’t say to fool those listening) is that we have a high per capita emissions, because we have so many emissions-intensive industries in our economy and a relatively small population – inevitably therefore, our emissions are high per capita. But we only produce less than 1.5% of the total, which is not enough for the climate to even notice. So a carbon tax and any reduction in emissions that we make here in Australia, are <shouts>UTTERLY POINTLESS GESTURES</shouts>.

And don’t, DON’T, whatever you do click the link. It’s a nauseous arse-lick piece by Fairfax’s Michelle Grattan full of sick-making photos of Julia with Obama, and a frankly horrific video which plays whether you want it to or not – highlight is Julia blaming Abbott (or Mr Rabbit, as she calls him – elocution was never her strong point) for her poll slide – priceless.

LINK – you have been warned.

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Newspoll: Labor plummets

8 March, 2011 by

Disaster for Labor (Blue: Coalition/Abbott, Red: Labor/Gillard, Grey: uncommitted

In the first NewsPoll since the announcement of the carbon tax, Labor’s standing in the polls, and that of leader Julia Gillard, has dropped like a stone:

JULIA Gillard’s carbon tax plan has reversed public support for action on global warming, damaged her leadership and delivered Labor its lowest primary support on record.

Tony Abbott is now the closest he has been to Ms Gillard as preferred prime minister.

And, as satisfaction with the Prime Minister slumps just nine months after she agreed to challenge Kevin Rudd, she remains behind the Foreign Minister as the preferred Labor leader.

In just two weeks, Ms Gillard’s personal support has gone from its best since she became Prime Minister in June last year to her worst. It is now the same as Mr Rudd’s failing personal support when he began campaigning for the mining tax in May last year.

Since Ms Gillard announced her intention to introduce a carbon tax from July next year, overall positive public support for action on global warming, even if it meant rising prices for electricity and petrol, has turned negative. A majority of people, or 53 per cent, are now against Labor’s plan, with 42 per cent in favour.

According to the latest Newspoll survey, taken exclusively for The Australian last weekend, Labor’s primary vote crashed six percentage points to just 30 per cent, the lowest primary vote in Newspoll survey history. Previously, the lowest primary vote was 31 per cent, in 1993, when Paul Keating was prime minister and Australia was in recession.

The Coalition’s primary vote, after falling sharply two weeks ago because of internal divisions, bounced back to 45 per cent. This is the Coalition’s highest primary vote since March 2006, when John Howard was prime minister and nine months before Kim Beazley was replaced by Mr Rudd as opposition leader. (source)

The Australian people do not like being lied to. Whether you support action on climate or not, Gillards backflip, breaking her promise not to implement a carbon tax under “any government I lead”, has irked the electorate and could spell disaster for Labor. Dennis Shanahan:

JULIA Gillard’s decision to announce her plan for a carbon tax from July 1 next year could be the political game-changer for her leadership, the Labor government and, most importantly, the future of climate change action in Australia.

Every possible element to drive down the standing of the Prime Minister, her government and the climate change debate has combined in such a way that the political and social divisions in Australia that have been evolving for years have become palpable and public.

Labor has lost its licence to campaign on climate change, a hard-won goodwill it had towards fighting global warming and a preparedness of consumers to pay, which was the fundamental underpinning of any political campaign to sell a new tax and raise prices.

The extent to which all the fault lines within Labor become entrenched – between the stereotypical inner-city lefties and the suburban conservatives, between young and old and those prepared or able to pay the cost of trying to arrest global warming – will decide the government’s fate. (source)

And also worth a read is Tony Abbott’s comments on climate in Adelaide:

TONY Abbott has declared Julia Gillard wants to change Australia’s way of life by introducing a price on carbon that would make it harder for people to turn on their airconditioners or to drive their cars.

In a speech in Adelaide last night, the Opposition Leader said the carbon tax would be the “big issue” of the next election campaign, regardless of when it was held.

Seizing the opportunity to intensify his attack while the Prime Minister is on her trip to the US, Mr Abbott said: “If this is to be more than just a hit on people’s cost of living, it must utterly transform the way we live and how we work.”

Mr Abbott said, given people’s propensity to use their airconditioners and to drive their cars, “if a carbon tax is to reduce electricity use and car use it will have to raise the price of daily life very considerably indeed”. (source)

Interesting times.

UPDATE: Hilarious to see ABC and Fairfax try to avoid this completely, both leading with “Obama ♥ Gillard” stories… pass the sick bag. On second thoughts, shouldn’t it be Bob Brown visiting the US? He is the PM after all…

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Swan: public "confused" by carbon tax

7 March, 2011 by

If it quacks like a duck… it's a tax

Ah, yes, the old excuses are the best. If anyone disagrees with your policy, just say the public are too ignorant to properly understand it, and that all that’s necessary is better “communication”. Such is the arrogance of Labor that is believes it is beyond criticism, so when the public go ape because their Prime Minister has lied to them about a carbon tax in order to get elected, they go into self-deluding rationalisation strategies – in other words, we’re right and the public are just a bunch of stupid bogans. Charming.

AUSTRALIANS are confused by the government’s carbon tax plan, Acting Prime Minister Wayne Swan admits.

Mr Swan has tried to downplay concerns about the proposal to cut pollution, saying the scheme would not operate like a “traditional tax”.

He said a “traditional tax” would take money from Australians’ pay packets, while the government’s scheme would take money from big businesses.

Opposition leader Tony Abbott was quick to match the Treasurer’s spin with his own, saying if it “acts like a tax … it is a tax”. (source)

Swan is desperately trying to spin the Labor government and himself out of trouble by claiming that this is a tax on “polluters” [what type of pollution is carbon dioxide again? – Ed], but carefully avoiding the fact that the “polluters” will pass on the tax to their consumers in the form of increased prices. Otherwise, why would there be a need for bewilderingly complex “compensation schemes” for individuals? Sorry Wayne, doesn’t wash.

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