The Liberal Party has today announced a new direction in energy and emissions policy, placing
affordable energy and the cost of living at the centre of Australia’s economic future.
Leader of the Opposition Sussan Ley and Shadow Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction Dan
Tehan said the Liberal Party’s priority will be to deliver affordable energy for families and businesses,
while continuing to reduce emissions responsibly.
“Our priority is energy affordability and getting costs down for households and businesses,” the
Opposition Leader said.
“Under Labor, power bills are up nearly 40 per cent, household budgets are stretched to the limit, and
industry and small businesses are collapsing under the weight of rising costs. Australians deserve an
energy policy that puts them first.
“The Liberal Party is committed to the Paris Agreement and responding to climate change in a way
that is affordable, responsible and achievable.”
Under our plan, affordable and reliable energy will always come first. Our emissions reduction goals
will never come at the expense of Australian families and this principle will guide every decision we
take.
To keep faith with that commitment, the Liberal Party will remove a net zero target from our policy
and, if elected, will remove Labor’s 43 per cent 2030 target and its net zero by 2050 target from the
Climate Change Act 2022. We remain committed to the Paris Agreement and to doing our fair share to
reduce emissions in a way that protects household budgets and keeps our economy strong.
Our approach will not impose new mandates, nor set interim targets from Opposition. Instead, we will
reduce emissions on average year on year as we did when last in government, in line with comparable
countries and as fast and as far as technologies allow without imposing mandated costs.
Yet Labor’s plan to double the rate of reduction to meet its 2050 target would come at enormous cost,
with more than $75 billion already committed and up to $530 billion in additional investment
estimated by business as needed to reach its 2035 target. That is equivalent to $50,000 per household.
Under the Coalition, Australia outpaced much of the developed world, cutting emissions by 28 per
cent on 2005 levels while growing the economy.
Over the past 20 years, Australia has reduced its emissions by 28 per cent, while comparable
developed countries have reduced theirs by around 16 per cent on average, and global emissions have
continued to rise. For two decades, Australia has been reducing emissions at more than one and a half
times the average rate of other developed nations, cutting around 9 million tonnes each year.
To reach net zero by 2050, Australia would need to reduce emissions by around 17 million tonnes per
year, which is double the rate achieved over the past two decades.
Yet Labor’s plan to double the rate of reduction to meet its 2050 target would come at enormous cost,
with more than 75 billion dollars already committed and up to $530 billion in additional investment
estimated by business as needed to reach its 2035 target. That is equivalent to $50,000 per household.
“Labor’s plan is unaffordable, unrealistic and unfair,” the Leader of the Opposition said.
“They promised a $275 cut to power bills, but instead bills are up to $1,300 more than promised.
Their policies have driven up prices, kept inflation higher for longer and put jobs at risk.
“Labor badly missed their 2025 target for electricity prices. How can we believe their 2030, 2035 or
2050 targets for emissions?”
