3m agoThu 18 Sep 2025 at 9:45pm
Road user charge must not disincentivise uptake of electric vehicles, Bowen says
Chris Bowen says the move towards an electric vehicle road user charge over time must ensure the continued uptake of electric vehicles.
Federal, state and territory governments are weighing up introducing a road user charge as Australians purchase more electric vehicles.
The climate change minister says the introduction of any road user charge must not disincentivise the uptake of electric vehicles.
“I think everyone is on the same page that this is something which is going to have to happen in due course but needs to be very carefully worked through to ensure … Australians get to take up EVs, not to disincentivise it, and I agree with that,” Bowen says.
8m agoThu 18 Sep 2025 at 9:40pm
Chris Bowen says 2035 target would require Australia to double emissions reduction
Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen has appeared on ABC News Breakfast to discuss the government 2035 emissions reduction target.
Bowen has been asked how many cars will need to be electric on Australian roads by 2035 to hit the government’s target.
The climate change minister says the target would require a doubling of Australia’s emissions reduction compared to the last decade.
“That’s equivalent of taking all of transport Australia’s emissions out twice over the next decade,” Bowen says.
He says there are new electric vehicle models and brands arriving in Australia each day which is boosting choice for consumers.
“We’re already seeing lots of new models come in, models that are inexpensive, models that are expensive, models that are fancy, models that are basic because that’s a lot more choice for Australian,” he says.
13m agoThu 18 Sep 2025 at 9:35pm
Government should be focused on bringing down power prices: Jane Hume
Health Minister Mark Butler stepped up on his usual spot with Liberal Senator Jane Hume on Channel Seven.
Butler has defended the government’s 2035 target and says it’s consistent with scientific advice and beneficial for the economy.
He says Australia needs a plan to transition away from fossil fuel energy production as coal fired power stations reach the end of their life.
“The worst situation will be if there is no plan, and frankly, that is what Jane is having to fight in her party room right now, the idea that we just stick our head in the sand and not see any investment,” Butler says.
Asked if the Coalition believes in climate change, Jane Hume says it “absolutely” Australia should bring down carbon emissions.
But she says the target announced by Labor yesterday will achieve an emissions reduction and will instead come at a cost to taxpayers.
She says the government’s National Climate Risk Assessment released earlier this week was “alarmist”.
“What the government should be focusing on right now is bringing energy prices down,” Hume says.
23m agoThu 18 Sep 2025 at 9:24pm
Labor’s 2035 target met with mixed reaction from agricultural sector
The federal government’s 2035 climate target has been met with mixed feelings across the board, including from the agricultural sector.
Fourth generation Singleton cattle farmer Sophie Nichols’ family changed their farming practices after the last drought in the NSW Hunter Valley seven years ago, tripling their solar and installing batteries.
She says she would have preferred a target locked in at the higher end of the government’s 62-70 per cent range.
“The lower end really does put particularly farmers at risk of devastating climatic events,” Nichols says.
“I have Angus cattle here, the thought of having to put them through 42-degree days if we don’t address climate change now is very scary.”
Bronwyn Petrie is chair of NSW Farmers’ Conservation and Resource Management Committee.
“I think it provides some certainty of what the government is looking for, however, the important thing here is not to yet again burden the agriculture sector,” she says.
She says farmers haven’t been compensated for billions of dollars in emissions reduction activities they undertook to meet the nation’s Kyoto Protocol commitments.
“If it wasn’t for the farmers … Australia would have never met those targets.”
40m agoThu 18 Sep 2025 at 9:07pm
Vanuatu’s climate change minister says 2035 target range ‘worries’ him
(AFP: Hilaire Bule)
Vanuatu’s climate change minister says Australia’s 2035 target falls short of what’s required to keep communities safe.
The federal government yesterday unveiled its long-awaited 2035 emissions reduction, vowing to cut its emissions by 62 to 70 per cent.
Ralph Regenvanu says the federal government should have set the bar at reducing emissions at 75 per cent on 2005 levels.
Regenvanu says the target range set by the government “worries” him because it gives Australia the option of going for the lowest number.
The climate change minister says Australia’s ambitions don’t go far enough and that any target needs to be legislated.
“There should be a very hard, lowest possible number, which should be 75. So that’s worrying because it provides that room for doing far less,” Regenvanu says.
“Australia is, it’s in terms of per capita cumulative emissions, it’s the third-highest contributor of emissions in the world. So it needs to do far more than just what we’re seeing here,” he says.
Regenvanu took aim at the federal government’s decision to extend the life of Woodside’s North West Shelf gas plant.
“To approve new projects into the future, like what happened with Woodside just last week, that’s really bad faith to continue down that pathway when we all know there is a climate crisis upon us,” he says.
48m agoThu 18 Sep 2025 at 8:59pm
Good morning 👋
Hello and welcome from wherever you’re joining us this morning. It’s great to have you here on this fine Canberra day!
I’m Josh Boscaini joining you live (and bleary-eyed) from Parliament House here and ready to bring you the day in federal politics.
Remember yesterday? Just in case you need a recap, the federal government unveiled a 62 to 70 per cent 2035 climate target range.
It’s likely we’ll hear some more reaction to that emissions reduction target as we get into the thick of things this morning.
Strap in. We’re nearly there. Let’s power through it!
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