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July 26 (Bloomberg) — Australian opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull said the government is guilty of “extraordinary arrogance” by refusing to discuss his party’s concerns over its proposals to cut carbon pollution.
“The better approach is to sit down with the government and negotiate,” Turnbull said today in an interview on ABC’s Insiders program. “Their refusal to do so is extraordinary arrogance and just shows the contempt that they have, and how out of touch they are, with the position of Australian workers.”
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd needs the support of at least seven lawmakers from the opposition coalition to pass the draft laws in the upper house Senate. Climate Change Minister Penny Wong yesterday said nine conditions put forward by Turnbull for supporting the government’s plan amount to “platitudes.”
“Our demand that the Australian legislation should provide no less protection to Australian workers than American legislation provides to American workers, her dismissal of that as a platitude, is an insult to every Australian worker whose job is threatened by this poorly designed scheme,” Turnbull said.
Last week, Turnbull said the coalition may support the bills if amendments were made. The Weekend Australian newspaper reported yesterday that the opposition leader had won his party’s support to negotiate with the government, and that he was calling for the draft proposals to include extra compensation for coal miners, electricity generators and potentially other heavy industries.
Turnbull said he will consider the final government bill on its merits.
“What Mr. Turnbull has put forward is a shopping list of platitudes that are vague and inconsistent,” Wong told reporters in Adelaide yesterday. “We’ve put forward a plan that will start to reduce Australia’s carbon pollution, a plan that will tackle climate change and a plan under which we think people will make their fair contribution.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Shani Raja in Sydney at [email protected].
By Shani Raja
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