Climate Action Merribek: people in Brunswick, Coburg, Fawkner and Glenroy wanting action on climate change

Senator Janet Rice: We have a budget emergency, A carbon budget emergency

September 16, 2016 at 2:22 am John Englart Leave a comment

In the Senate on Thursday 15 September, Victorian Greens Senator Janet Rice made an impassioned speech: There is opportunity in our climate crisis, but we must take a different direction. (Youtube) .

Janet Rice’s electoral office is on Sydney Road, Coburg.

It is worthwhile listening to her speech in full as Rice understands the climate science and frames the Government omnibus budget bill and the deal to slash ARENA funding in this context. She refers at the start to talking with ANU climate scientist Dr Andrew Glikson.

Here is a text excerpt:

“In tackling the budget emergency we are leaving the obvious ways of bringing in billions of dollars – those subsidies to the fossil fuel companies – we are leaving them completely untouched. It is not enough. Half measures are not enough. Business as usual is not enough. It is not where we need to head.”

“Yes we have a budget emergency. A carbon budget emergency. It overwhelms the financial monetary problems which can be pretty simply fixed by some of the many revenue measures that the Greens have proposed, the full impact of which would bring in over $100 billion of revenue over the forward estimates.

My colleagues in their contributions, have already outlined what those opportunities are. The various measures that could be bringing in revenue instead of these misplaced, short-sighted cuts we are considering in this omnibus bill.

“We have a carbon budget emergency, because to keep a safe climate for humanity, there is no carbon budget left. Zero. We need to be drawing carbon out of the atmosphere, not brazenly, profligately, criminally continuing to pollute and destroy our one and only planet. Our one and only home.

“If we are to have a habitable planet for us, our children, our grand children to live in, we need to urgently tackle our carbon budget emergency. We need to massively increase our investment in renewables. Not slash and try to pretend that half of not enough will do. It won’t.

“We in this parliament have a choice. We can choose to direct ourselves towards the future, where humanity does have a future. It gives me such sadness in my heart I have to face the reality that the current direction this Government is taking us, epitomised by the measures in this bill, are taking us entirely in the wrong direction.”

A speech from the heart and from the science addressing the urgency of the transition to a zero carbon economy, that is being ignored in the rough and tumble of major party politics.

Entry filed under: news, Politician education. Tags: Janet Rice.