Nationals threaten retaliation as ANZ goes green

The Nationals have threatened to use policy levers against the ANZ in retaliation against the bank’s 10-year climate change strategy.

“This policy is disgraceful. Banks are not and should not try to become society’s moral compass and arbiter — the Australian people decide that by who they elect”: Agricultural minister David Littleproud. Picture: Getty Images

The Nationals have threatened to use policy levers against the ANZ, including revoking deposit guarantees, in retaliation against the bank’s 10-year climate change strategy which they claim will unfairly target farmers and miners.

The ANZ climate change statement, released on Thursday to coincide with the bank’s annual result, sparked a backlash from Nationals, regional Labor MPs and environmental activist groups after the major lender unveiled target dates to drive down emissions.

The new ANZ policy, which adopts climate change as a condition of lending as the big four bank repositions its climate risk, will target high-emitting customers across the agriculture, food and beverage, energy, transport and building sectors.

Senior Nationals MPs, led by Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack, Agriculture Minister David Littleproud and Resources Minister Keith Pitt, slammed the climate plan as “virtue-signalling”, “disappointing” and “disgraceful”.

“This policy is disgraceful. Banks are not and should not try to become society’s moral compass and arbiter — the Australian people decide that by who they elect,” Mr Littleproud said.

The former banker said the Nationals would “review every policy lever at the federal government’s disposal including the availability of deposit guarantees to protect Australian farmers from … arbitrary boardroom ideological agendas”.

ANZ chief executive Shayne Elliott moved to allay concerns over the bank’s climate strategy, stressing it was targeting the top 100 carbon emitters.

“We remain firmly committed to supporting Australia’s farmers and producers, now and into the future,” Mr Elliott said.

“This is about helping our major agribusiness customers run more energy and capital-efficient operations. It’s not about family farms.

“I’m proud of the new policy and we’ve been having very constructive conversations with our customers. This essentially brings us into line with global best practice.”

The ANZ will increase lending to lower carbon energy by “further reducing the carbon intensity of our electricity generation lending portfolio by only directly financing low carbon gas and renewable projects by 2030”.

Mr McCormack warned the bank’s expectation for 100 of its largest emitting companies to have low carbon transition plans in place by next year could have a wider impact than anticipated. “Transport, fertiliser and fuel companies snared by these new rules could have no choice but to pass on costs along the agricultural supply chain, only to have farmers pick up the bill at the end,” Mr McCormack said.

The Australian understands senior Liberal figures inside government would not support policy levers being pulled to target the ANZ. Liberal MP Trent Zimmerman said he welcomed major companies stepping up to the challenge of contributing to a low-emissions future.

Opposition agriculture spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon said the ANZ climate plan was “vague” and labelled it a “pitch to shareholder activism”. The Hunter MP, whose electorate is home to the nation’s largest thermal coal producers, said if banks stopped lending to miners, they would find other funding sources.

Activist groups criticised the ANZ plan, with Australian Conservation Foundation chief executive Kelly O’Shanassy warning the bank’s withdrawal timelines were “too slow”.

Shareholder activist group Market Forces said the ANZ plan meant “no major Australian bank or insurer is willing to back thermal coal beyond 2030 except for NAB”.