Two views: Corangamite candidates Mitch Pope, Paul Barker on climate change

‘I’m no scientist’: Corangamite candidates have their say on Peter Dutton’s response to climate change. Share your thoughts.

Green's Mitch Pope and Libertarian candidate Paul Barker.

In the second leader debate, Peter Dutton’s reluctance to directly address the impact of climate change has sparked diverse opinions.

The opposition leader, when asked if he believed climate change was a factor in natural disasters in his home state of Queensland, acknowledged there was “an impact”.

But when pushed on whether he thought it was getting worse, Mr Dutton demurred, saying he would “let scientists pass that judgment”.

Now Corangamite candidates, Libertarian Paul Barker and the Greens Mitch Pope, share their views on the climate fumble.

And scroll down to share your view.

Paul Barker

Libertarian candidate for Corangamite

Peter Dutton had a chance to speak plainly about climate change in the leaders debate and as usual he almost got there, then chickened out at the finish line.

When asked if things are getting worse he said “I’m not a scientist.”

Mate, I’m not a hairdresser but I can still tell when someone’s had a dodgy haircut.

I would’ve just said “No, I don’t think so.”

Because I don’t.

We’ve had decades of headlines telling us we’re on the brink of doom. Acid rain. Global warming. Global boiling. Yet here we still are.

That’s not to say the climate doesn’t change. It clearly does. It always has. But the hysteria. The forecasts of armageddon. They keep missing the mark.

Dutton also reckons we’re transitioning to zero emissions technology.

But what does that really mean?

In practice it’s this.

Surf Coast Shire councillor Paul Barker is standing again in Corangamite at the 2025 federal election. Picture: Brad Fleet

We dig up our coal, ship it off to China, and then pretend it’s not our emissions when we buy our Chinese-made energy infrastructure.

It’s the political equivalent of hiding your beer cans in the neighbour’s recycling bin and pretending you’re doing Dry July.

We act like shutting down Aussie coal power plants is noble while quietly cashing the cheque for their emissions. It’s theatre, not leadership.

Now don’t get me wrong. Dutton made some good points too.

Natural disasters are part of life in Australia. Fires, floods, droughts.

They’re in the national DNA. And he’s right that we’re a country of 27 million people.

We could vanish tomorrow and our 1 per cent share of global emissions wouldn’t even be noticed. Meanwhile the PM promised us all a $275 power bill cut and instead we’ve got prices going up and reliability going down. Bravo.

But here’s the bit that really matters to me and to Libertarians in general.

We believe in your right to choose. If you want to put solar panels on your roof and live off grid, sweet.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton debate at the ABC’s Parramatta studio in Western Sydney on April 16, 2025. Picture: Matt Roberts

If you want coal fired power because it’s cheap and reliable, great.

Want nuclear power without taxpayer handouts? Fine by me.

What we’re against is government using your money to rig the game.

Subsidies, mandates and bans.

Government picking favourites and sending you the bill.

That’s not green policy. That’s corporate welfare with a green lick of paint.

It’s time someone said it. The emperor has no clothes.

The climate story being pushed on us isn’t just exaggerated. It’s being used as an excuse to grab more control over how you live, what you drive and how you power your home.

People are afraid to say it out loud because they don’t want to be shouted down.

But I’d rather be honest and cop a few angry tweets than sit back and nod along with a lie.

You can believe in climate change and still believe in freedom.

That’s the Libertarian way.

I’m standing for everyone’s prosperity, family and freedom by calling for less government, more choice and a healthy respect for the truth even when it’s uncomfortable.

Mitch Pope

Greens candidate for Corangamite

For someone who has been in politics for over 20 years, now running to become the prime minister of our country, I would have hoped that by now he would have been confident enough to repeat what climate scientists have been saying for more than 40 years, that human caused climate change is making weather events more extreme.

But instead Dutton has his head buried so deep in the sand that you can only see the soles of his shoes poking out the top.

On Wednesday evening Peter Dutton couldn’t properly answer whether he thought that climate change was making weather events worse.

He began by saying, “I think you can see there is an impact”, followed by “I don’t know … I’m not a scientist”, almost as if he quickly remembered who he is supposed to be representing; the coal and gas industries.

Mitch Pope is the Greens candidate for Corangamite

People like me feel like we’re continuously screaming into the void, trying time and time again to bring attention to the most pressing issue of our time and the greatest threat to life, to be met with so called leaders like Dutton pretending to act like no one really knows if the climate is changing, as if the scientists haven’t been studying and banging the drum about this for more than 40 years.

The science of climate change is unequivocal, more than 97 per cent of climate scientists agree that humans are causing the climate change we’re experiencing today, mostly through burning fossil fuels.

We are seeing records broken time and time again, the hottest 10 years on record have all been in the last 10 years, more intense floods and fires are destroying homes and livelihoods, and last year the Great Barrier Reef experienced its worst bleaching event ever.

In the years to come we’re going to see longer droughts and more intense floods, fires and heatwaves and more food and water scarcity, putting more pressure on our societies.

Right now, we need leaders who are ready to accept the truth of the matter, that the climate crisis is getting worse and is causing weather events to become more extreme, and take action. Instead, Dutton would rather avoid talking about it altogether, almost like he’s fulfilling his title as Temu Trump; not quite the climate denying Trump, but somewhere on the way.

The young ones of today are desperate for action.

As we watch more intense weather events ripping through our country, we all feel frightened at the prospect of how this will play out in the decades to come.

We must take bold action on the climate crisis, such as ending new coal and gas and protecting native forests.

Only the Greens are dedicated to taking the climate action that’s required.

It’s clear that Dutton and the Liberals aren’t really committed to action on climate change, and Labor is still opening new coal and gas mines.

A vote for the Greens will keep the climate sceptic Dutton out, and push Labor to act on the climate crisis.

Originally published as Two views: Corangamite candidates Mitch Pope, Paul Barker on climate change