Cory Bernardi slams Liberal’s carbon pricing on power companies idea

Cory Bernardi slams the Coalition’s carbon pricing idea, as Peta Credlin says her phone hasn’t stopped ringing | WATCH

Cory Bernardi questioned why the government would “reopen a cauterised wound that had healed”. Picture: Kym Smith

A group of “nervous” Coalition MPs could support a type of carbon pricing on power companies if it reduces electricity costs, says Liberal MP Craig Kelly, as his colleague Cory Bernardi slams the idea as “one of the dumbest things I have ever heard”.

Disunity has broken out within the Coalition after the government released its terms of reference for a highly-anticipated review of climate change policies, which has left open the possibility of applying an emissions intensity scheme to the electricity sector.

But South Australian cabinet minister Christopher Pyne flatly rejected the concept and Senator Bernardi questioned why the government would “reopen a cauterised wound that had healed”.

“It will not lower prices and is not in the national interest,” he told The Australian.

Senator Bernardi said any emissions trading scheme or form of carbon pricing was “economic suicide”.

“It’s like ripping a scab off an old wound,” he told 2GB radio.

“This is a wound that was healed and unfortunately now the blood starts to gush.

“It’s ultimately up to the Prime Minister — he’s got to put a definitive statement out that says we are not going to have an emissions trading scheme.”

Tony Abbott’s former chief of staff Peta Credlin claimed she had never seen such a reaction from backbenchers on an issue like she had yesterday.

“My phone has not stopped all day. People are really angry that they sense the party will re-litigate those issues which they had considered closed and dealt with,” she told Sky News last night.

Mr Kelly, a NSW MP who chairs the backbench environment and energy committee, said he had no objection to the government’s climate change review leaving everything on the table but warned if it recommended a change in policy that increased the price of electricity “a lot of us in the Coalition will not accept that”.

“We are nervous about it because we think electricity costs, energy costs are such an important factor for every single household, for every single business and we have to be so careful with these schemes,” Mr Kelly told ABC radio.

“It’s very easy to lump them on and we just cannot do anything that puts upward pressure on electricity prices that is going to put our nation at a competitive disadvantage.”

Asked if he was open to a sector-specific scheme, Mr Kelly said: “If we’re going to see electricity prices reduce that way, fantastic, I’m all for it, but if we’re going to see electricity prices, some scheme come in, that pushes electricity prices higher in this country, that is what the objection is about.

“There’s no ideological opposition to this, it’s simply about the cost of electricity in this nation.”

Frontier Economics managing director Danny Price, who has worked with Malcolm Turnbull and independent senator Nick Xenophon on models for an emissions intensity scheme, said it could not be called a carbon tax because it did not raise taxes for the government.

“It has much, much lower impacts on prices. In fact, applied to Australia it actually puts prices lower than they would otherwise be so it can’t be claimed that prices will skyrocket because in fact prices will moderate,” he said on ABC radio.

Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said last night said the position of the Coalition and National Party was that “we don’t support a carbon tax”.

“We’ve said that quite clearly. So, I don’t know, they can investigate possibilities,” he said on the ABC’s 7.30, referring to the climate review.

“We’re honouring our commitments. We’re going to meet our commitments to the Paris protocols. In fact, we’re going to outdo it.”

Review ‘business as usual’

Malcolm Turnbull says the review of climate policy is “business as usual” and was promised as part of the platform the Coalition took to elections in 2010, 2013 and 2016.

The Prime Minister played down concerns in Coalition ranks about the review putting up electricity prices or adopting a policy that could resemble a carbon tax, saying “I have never supported a carbon tax”.

In a veiled swipe at others in the Coalition who have changed their mind on the issue over the years, he said: “There are many distinguished members of the Coalition parties who have supported a carbon tax over the past. I’ve never done.”

Mr Turnbull, speaking after announcing $3.9 million for 24 organisations for projects to encourage girls and women to study and pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and maths to mark the first anniversary of his National Innovation and Science Agenda, said the biggest concern Australians had was jobs and the strength of the economy.

He sidestepped questions about cutting Tony Abbott’s Green Army, saying in a tight budget all programs were being reviewed and decisions would be announced in the midyear budget update on December 19.

Asked about today’s Newspoll, published in The Australian, Mr Turnbull noted it shows an improvement in the party vote” although he said the “polls have been pretty consistent for a while”.

The Newspoll shows the Coalition primary vote rising one point to 39 per cent and the government increasing its two-party preferred vote from 47 to 48 per cent, although it still trails Labor. But Mr Turnbull’s standing as Better PM has slipped to 41 per cent, his worst level since he replaced Mr Abbott 15 months ago and his lead over Bill Shorten has narrowed to nine points.

‘Australia’s number one follower’

Bill Shorten, like Mr Joyce, said his party had “made it clear” it would not support a carbon tax as he leapt on divisions within the Liberal Party over climate policy.

“The Liberal Party is in meltdown under Malcolm Turnbull’s leadership. We’ve seen yet again Malcolm Turnbull know what he has to do on climate change but he simply can’t lead his party. Yet again another battle in the Liberal Party civil war, yet again Malcolm Turnbull who’s becoming not Australia’s number one leader but Australia’s number one follower. It’s not good enough,” the Opposition Leader said.

“Malcolm Turnbull knows that the government’s policies on climate change are a flop, he knows he’s a sellout. He knows he needs to do more on climate change but he just can’t convince his party.”