Greens Leader, Adam Bandt MP, has referred allegations of a $1 billion taxpayer funded climate fraud through the government’s carbon credits scheme to the Auditor General and called for a full, independent inquiry into the claims.
Overnight a whistleblower, the highly-renowned former head of the Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee, Andrew Macintosh, described the program as “largely a scam”.
Greens Leader Adam Bandt MP said:
“This is yet another rort from a terrible government.
“This climate fraud must be fully and independently investigated.
“When the former head of the government’s Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee reveals that the carbon credits scheme is ‘largely a scam’, we need an open transparent inquiry with powers to get to the bottom of it.
“This is a critical issue. Both the Morrison Government and Labor are claiming to take climate seriously while planning to open up 114 new coal and gas projects, relying on permits and offsets to cover up their duplicity. If carbon credits are fraudulent too, then Australia will definitely blow its climate targets”
Greens spokesperson for agriculture, Senator Peter Whish-Wilson said:
“The Morrison Government’s botched carbon credit scheme undermines farmers wanting to do their bit for climate change.
“I meet plenty of farmers who care deeply about the land they’re on, understand the changes they are seeing around them and want to act, but these serious allegations about the integrity of the Government’s carbon credit scheme threaten that goodwill.
“Since forming Government, the Coalition has ripped up nearly all existing climate policies such as the carbon price and clean energy package, ramped up fossil fuel exploration and production, and has instead offered farmers a rort.
“While Australia’s leading farmers and the nation’s major farm groups endorse emissions reduction targets and set their own ambitious climate goals, the Coalition has sabotaged climate policy and shot farmers in the foot.
“It’s in Australian farmers best interest for a full independent inquiry into this matter, so we can get it right, and have full public confidence in the effectiveness of any carbon credit scheme.”
Greens Environment spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:
“Our environment can’t afford any more short-changing when it comes to protection.
“While casual rorting and cooking the books may be easily glossed over in the corporate world, Mother Nature keeps a very clean balance sheet. No amount of spin or tricky accounting can cover-up the biodiversity crisis our environment is in.
“Pretending things will get better, while doing little to stop things getting worse is pushing our biodiversity to breaking point. We need stronger environmental protection laws and an independent watchdog to enforce them.”