Newspoll: Nationals back PM’s net zero emissions plan but voter support for Coalition drops
Deputy PM Barnaby Joyce has dismissed reports he does not support the new net zero deal, as the latest Newspoll shows a dip in Coalition support.
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Barnaby Joyce says he’s “100 per cent on board” with a 2050 net zero emissions target amid reports he told his Nationals colleagues he didn’t support it.
The Deputy Prime Minister’s comments follow two weeks of deliberations by the Nationals over whether to support a cabinet-mandated 2050 net zero target and a week out from the UN climate change conference COP26.
The Nationals emerged from a two-hour party room meeting on Sunday with a promise to back Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s plan to achieve net zero emissions in Australia by 2050.
“I’ve said it quite clearly and unambiguously: I am 100 per cent on board with the goal to achieve net zero by 2050 because that was the decision of the Nationals party room,” Mr Joyce told ABC Radio National. “I can’t make it clearer than that.”
Voter support for the Coalition has dropped to its lowest level in three years as Scott Morrison heads to Glasgow.
According to an exclusive Newspoll conducted for The Australian, support for the Liberal-Nationals has fallen two points to 35 per cent, the lowest level of support this term.
The poll shows 47 per cent of voters believed the government should prioritise meeting emissions reduction targets compared to 40 per cent wanting lower energy bills.
This is a reversal of sentiment since 2018 when 64 per cent of voters said energy prices should be the priority and only 24 per cent believed reducing greenhouse gas emissions was more important.
Voters also favoured Labor over than the Coalition – 35 per cent to 28 per cent – to lead Australia’s response to the climate change challenge.
Mr Morrison’s approval ratings have also fallen further and are now level with those recorded in September, but they are still above the lowest recorded during the 2019-2020 summer bushfire crisis.
Speaking to media following the party meeting on Sunday, Mr Joyce confirmed the National’s position.
“We are in support of a process going forward that would go towards the 2050 emissions target,” he said.
However the support is conditional, with Mr Joyce saying his party would agree to give its support to cabinet’s position, however it would hinge on several key agreements.
He would not comment on the Nationals’ demands or suggestions that he had demanded an extra seat in cabinet.
Mr Joyce last week delivered Mr Morrison his conditions for his support for the coalition’s policy, with his demands centring around protections for rural and regional jobs and communities.
Mr Morrison was hoping to lockdown the National’s support before he flies to the United Nations’ climate summit in Glasgow which starts next week.
And Mr Joyce said he would agree to the Coalition policy provided their position made allowances for his negotiated settlement with Mr Morrison.
“We are in support of a process going forward that would go towards a 2050 emissions target,” Mr Joyce said in Canberra after walking out of a two-hour meeting with his Nationals colleagues on Sunday evening.
“That’s dependent on what we see in the cabinet submission, the conversations and the agreement between myself and the Prime Minister.
“We made sure we did everything in this place to understand the circumstances and opportunities that are before us and the realities that are before us.
Mr Joyce said he wanted to be sure that regional Australia felt represented, noting many of their supporters had concerns about climate policy, but said the Nationals risked slipping into irrelevance if they left the negotiating table.
“The position regional people are in now is vastly better than they were before we started those negotiations,” Mr Joyce said.
“But there is no way we can deal with those if we are outside the tent.”
However he would not comment on the terms of his demands and batted away questions about whether the Nationals had asked for an additional seat on Cabinet.
“Because I don’t have to mate,” he said when asked why he would not answer questions about his demands.
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Originally published as Newspoll: Nationals back PM’s net zero emissions plan but voter support for Coalition drops
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