The Sauce: Taxpayers billed $870k for COP29 pavilion to share ’stories of Australian climate action’

Dubbed a ‘super-emitter’ event, COP29 is also a super-spender, with taxpayers slugged more than $870,000 for a pavilion to allow bureaucrats to tell ‘diverse stories of Australia’s climate action’.

It’s been dubbed a “super-emitter” event – but COP29 is also a super-spender, with revelations taxpayers have been slugged more than $870,000 for a pavilion to allow federal government bureaucrats to “tell their diverse stories of Australia’s climate action”.

A tender notice from the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water published last month revealed it sought interest from providers for a pavilion to be supplied in Azerbaijan, where the United Nations climate change conference is being held.

The notice revealed the contract value as $871,628.

Further details about the pavilion are detailed on the department’s website, which declared the space as “an important piece of our international effort”.

“It is a space to tell their diverse stories of Australia’s climate action, to build partnerships and to advance international co-operation,” it said.

A pre-COP29 event was held at the swanky Shamakhi Palace Hotel in Azerbaijan. Picture: Supplied

“It also serves as a home-away-from-home for Australians at COP.”

The pavilion cost comes amid revelations COP29 is becoming one of the world’s top contributers to carbon emissions, with 291 planes associated with last year’s event in Dubai.

The FIFA World Cup is the biggest emitter, with 1846 flights associated with the event last year, while the Super Bowl had 200, according to Nature Portfolio.

Either way, even climate scientists are now claiming COP29 has morphed from a genuine conference to a junket for billionaires, fossil fuel lobbyists, pollies and government bureaucrats.

In addition to the event, freedom of information documents obtained by the Opposition show there was even a “heads of delegation retreat” held ahead of this year’s COP in July, with the government sending three people at a cost of almost $50,000.

The event was held at the very swanky Shamakhi Palace, which describes itself as “the ultimate luxury family resort in the heart of Azerbaijan”.

Opposition waste spokesman James Stevens. Picture: NewsWire/David Mariuz

The receipts showed some of the delegates also stayed at the resort for part of the trip.

Opposition waste spokesman James Stevens described the “eye-watering cost” and level of emissions COP29 was generating as “truly perverse”.

“The UN’s COP conferences are fast becoming carbon dioxide super-emitters,” he said.

“We don’t need this many bureaucrats swanning around palatial pavilions in Europe on the taxpayers’ dime when a delegation a fraction of the size could easily serve Australia’s interests and reduce carbon emissions at the same time.

“The eye-watering cost to the Australian taxpayer of such largesse is insulting to people suffering through Anthony Albanese’s continuing cost-of-living crisis back home.’’

TRUCKER CAPS

Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce is rarely without his Akubra.

But is he about to swap it out for a trucker cap?

Could Barnaby Joyce be about to swap his Akubra for a trucker cap? Picture: Martin Ollman

He certainly has enough of them, according to his latest update of his members’ interests.

On Friday, Joyce made a declaration of a gift of “50 Made To Order Trucker Hats”, which he valued at approximately $750.

The declaration follows a separate members’ interests update he made in July, when he revealed he had received a $500 S. Kidman & Co hat.

S. Kidman & Co is a beef producer owned, of course, by Gina Rinehart.

Other MPs to update their members’ interests last week included Labor MP Meryl Swanson, who disclosed a gift of two tickets to Accor Stadium “private suites” for the Coldplay concert.

Oh, and Nationals MP Michael McCormack also updated register to add a gift of a Qantas Chairman’s Lounge Membership.

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