John Howard talks to then Labor leader Simon Crean in the House of Representatives in August 2003. Days later,Howard would convince his cabinet to dump support for an emissions trading scheme.Credit:Penny Bradfield
The documents show that in the first half of 2003,the issue of how to reduce Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions was a growing concern. The Howard government in 2002 had decided not to ratify the Kyoto Protocol which,unlike almost every other nation,actually gave Australia the ability to increase its emissions.
While opposed to signing the protocol,the government wanted to meet its commitment which forced it to consider ways to bring emissions down.
In a submission that went to cabinet in July and was supported by then environment minister David Kemp,Costello,Downer and then acting industry minister Joe Hockey,an emissions trading scheme was explicitly backed.
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Arguing that such a scheme was “likely to be the most cost-effective policy for government”,the ministers said it would not be need to be in place until 2012 – the year the carbon tax ultimately came into operation.
“The preferred approach to the emissions management strategy centres on introduction of a broad-based market signal,” their submission argued.
“An emissions trading system offers the ability to achieve the environmental outcome with certainty when and if this becomes an appropriate choice. Emissions trading is recommended as the preferred market system (in comparison to a greenhouse levy) as it provides greater flexibility in the mechanisms available to provide transitional support for industry.”