15 reasons to oppose the GreenLabor carbon tax; by Paul Sheehan of the SMH
April 25th, 2011 by Warwick HughesPaul Sheehan writes for the too often GreenLeft compliant Sydney Morning Herald. He has this thought provoking article listing 15 reasons why the Gillard Govt carbon tax is lacking in logic.
What do readers think ? Can we add to Paul’s list ?
Paul Sheehan says – The justification for this tax is that it will curb greenhouse emissions endangering the planet. It is an argument which covers a multitude of sins.
Here are just some:
1. There is no mandate for the carbon tax. It was expressly singled out by Gillard during the last election as a no-go, which helped save her government.
2. The tax will have almost zero effect on global carbon dioxide emissions.
3. It is a tax on everything, as higher energy costs flow through the economy.
4. It is regressive, harming households and small businesses on tight budgets.
5. It is a massive exercise in tax churning.
6. It does not address the structural inefficiencies in the energy sector.
7. It is a prelude to a emissions trading scheme, a derivatives market.
8. Large-scale carbon trading is inherently vulnerable to fraud, manipulation and speculation, as seen in Europe.
9. It will introduce a new layer of complexity to the economy.
10. It ignores significant energy savings possible without a punitive tax.
11. The federal government has an abysmal record in delivering large-scale interventions.
12. Australia contributes about 1.5 per cent of global carbon emissions and any local measures will be irrelevant without a global carbon tax regime.
13. It will not introduce certainty to energy pricing as promised.
14. Solar and wind power generation are prohibitively expensive and cannot meet baseload power needs.
15. The tax represents a massive transfer of wealth and power to the bureaucratic class which benefits most from a new labyrinth of compliance and compulsion.
In short, a carbon chasm is emerging in Australia and when it is all boiled down, I think Sue Isles is right and Julia Gillard is wrong.
There is no mandate for the carbon tax. It was expressly singled out by Gillard during the last election as a no-go, which helped save her government.
Posted in News and Views | 7 Comments »
April 25th, 2011 at 1:43 pm
Regardless of point 1, the opposition and media should be pressing the government for proper answers regarding points 2, 10, 12, 14 and possibly 8. A tax without a proper cost/benefits analysis is pointless and harmful.
April 25th, 2011 at 8:07 pm
good article and surprising to see it in the SMH
Professor Carter et al have an article at WUWT wattsupwiththat.com/2011/04/25/australias-bad-carbon-policy-advice-dissected/#comment-647861
about the same subject
Please visit and leave a message of support if inclined (as I have done)
April 26th, 2011 at 10:12 am
This article is indeed refreshing for the SMH.
Additional points:
a. There has been talk of some industries receiving “free” credits on part of their emissions. Will this be fair to all, and not subject to favouritism or fraud?
b. If energy costs are forced up above normal inflation, stagflation is highly likely, as with the oil (& other fuel) price rises of the 1970s. There are already large electricity tariff rises in the pipeline in NSW.
c. If this tax regime morphs to an ETS, the price may fall to zero, as happened at the Chicago Exchange. Wishful thinking?
April 26th, 2011 at 1:27 pm
Also overlooks the fact that Australia exports far more CO2 than it produces internally. This will continue unabated as overseas demand for coal and LNG continues to grow exponentially, more than offsetting any emission reductions we are likely to achieve at home under the carbon tax.
April 26th, 2011 at 3:46 pm
Also overlooks the fact that most of our emissions are absorbed by our landmass. A 1992 CSIRO paper says in the abstract “The present modelled rate of net sequestration is of a similar magnitude to CO2 emissions from continental fossil fuel burning and land clearing combined.”
August 12th, 2012 at 12:42 pm
Hey guys, im doing a school assignment , what structural inefficiencies in the energy sector?
August 13th, 2012 at 9:45 am
Rohyl Says:
Can you be a bit more specific?
Are you thinking of the disruption caused by “renewable energy”; meaning more infrastructure and expense, price rises and the need to run existing plant inefficiently to provide backup?