Al Gore’s a hypocrite who is out to enrich himself, says Liberal Dennis Jensen

LIBERAL MP and climate change sceptic Dennis Jensen claims Al Gore will personally profit from Clive Palmer’s new carbon policy.

Clive Palmer and former United States Vice President Al Gore holding a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra.

LIBERAL MP and climate change sceptic Dennis Jensen claims Al Gore will personally profit from Clive Palmer’s new climate policy, saying the Nobel laureate “would do anything and say anything for a buck”.

Dr Jensen also likened the former US vice-president and leading climate activist to a member of a fictional, profit-obsessed alien race in the Star Trek movie and TV series.

Mr Gore last night commended the Palmer United Party’s policy of abolishing Labor’s world-leading carbon tax, while retaining the Renewable Energy Target and Clean Energy Finance Corporation.

Dr Jensen, speaking in parliament, said the joint media announcement proved Mr Gore “would do anything and say anything for a buck”.

“One question that must be asked … is what investments Al Gore might have that might prove lucrative by retaining the RET and the CEFC,” Dr Jensen said, under the protection of parliamentary privilege.

“Investigation of these schemes and what organisations are getting advantage, and whether Gore has shares in those companies, would prove no doubt that Gore has a pecuniary vested interest in those schemes.”

Dr Jensen claimed Mr Gore’s personal carbon footprint was “probably larger than a number of small towns in some parts of the world”.

“Start believing Al Gore when he actually lives the carbon-dioxide-constrained lifestyle he advocates for everyone else,” Dr Jensen told parliament.

“He lives in a mansion in Tennessee where he consumes 20 times as much energy as the average American household, and Americans are not renowned for being parsimonious in their energy use. But that is only one of many houses that Al Gore has.

“Then there is Gore’s jetting around the world, once again a huge carbon footprint.”

Dr Jensen told parliament Mr Gore sold his television network, Current TV, to the Qatar state-owned satellite news network, Al-Jazeera.

“He was paid in petrodollars, despite all of his raging against the evils of the fossil fuel industry, around $70m profit. A nice little earner,” Dr Jensen said.

“Gore is not really earnest enough about the evils related to global warming to forgo profit, however hypocritical that makes him.

“For those who watch Star Trek, there is no one he reminds me of more than the Ferengi species, where profit is the first, last and only important factor.”

Dr Jensen, a former CSIRO research scientist, accused Mr Gore of telling “blatant untruths” about climate change.

“He is either science illiterate, or he is quite happy to spew whatever unscientific climate nonsense he needs to further enrich himself,” he told parliament.