Labor talks ETS but won't say 'tax'
News Corp media outlets say Labor wants another carbon tax.
National newspapers have published notes from a leaked Labor party discussion paper that raises the policy of taxing emissions-heavy industries, something considered abhorrent by the LNP and parts of the business sector.
The reports suggest Labor is considering a scheme that would include vehicle emission standards, new laws to govern power plants and energy efficiency targets for the family home.
Shadow Minister for Climate Change Mark Butler has called the reports “misleading and wrong”.
“Labor will not introduce a carbon tax. The document mentioned in today's papers is a briefing paper to inform discussion - it is not a policy document,” he said in a statement.
But despite Labor's denials, Government frontbencher Simon Birmingham says they should be upfront about their policies.
“lt [Labor] seems to be proposing not one, but two, or three different carbon taxes. Different ones for electricity, for vehicles, for big business,” he told Sky News.
“The real question for Labor is to be upfront about what their policies are.”
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten says he has always been, and remains, commited to introducing an Emissions Trading Scheme, saying it was a policy announced 12 months ago.
The policy is expected to be formally introduced to the ALP platform ahead of its national conference next week.
Labor’s alleged discussion of combating climate change through legislation stands in stark contrast to the topics of a recent LNP meeting, which sought to question the science underpinning claims about our environmental future.