Opinion

The West must not give China a free ride on net zero

Giving Beijing until 2060 to meet climate targets will only mean it gets more time to cheat, and better opportunities to pursue its military build-up.

Nick HossackColumnist

Apr 21, 2021 – 4.13pm

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President Biden’s climate envoy, John Kerry, has just returned from China where it is claimed that the US and China have agreed to fight climate change with seriousness and urgency. This development now puts pressure on Australia.

The question being ducked and fudged is whether the US and other Western countries will agree to be carbon neutral by 2050, but then give China a concession and allow it an additional 10 years to reach the target in 2060.

Nick Hossack is a public policy consultant, former policy director at the Australian Bankers Association, and former adviser to John Howard.