Political bumps threaten smooth-ride approach

AS expected, Ross Garnaut has recommended the federal government take a smooth-ride approach to the introduction of its carbon tax reforms.

Garnaut has recommended a relatively low starting price and a continuation of industry assistance measures that are more generous than many would have expected.

The starting price of $20 to $30 a tonne, rising by 4 per cent a year, before being integrated into a global trading scheme, is at the lower end of expectations. It is certainly lower than many people have said will be necessary.

His recommendation on industry assistance measures, largely mirroring the package in the Rudd government's original Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, is also at sharp odds with recent comments by Greens leader Bob Brown.

And his recommendation the Productivity Commission be used to review industry assistance measures may not please some within the government.

But Garnaut's advice is the sort that Julia Gillard and her Climate Change Minister, Greg Combet, need as they thrash out the details of their proposed scheme with their multi-party task force.

Garnaut has astutely identified the reform opportunity that comes with offsetting the additional cost for low and middle income earners.

The government will be pleased to repeat his assurances that the economic impact will be less severe than the opposition is keen to make out.

He argues the economy is used to dealing with fluctuations in such things as interest rates and the value of the Australian dollar.

But the government's challenge is not just with the big tax attack being mounted by Tony Abbott.

It is to negotiate Garnaut's slow-start approach past the Greens while not squandering the reform opportunity by unduly politicising the redistribution of revenue collected.