National on Climate Change

Colin James looks at National on climate change.

Former president Geoff Thompson delivered a decidedly greenish briefing to its lower North Island conference on Saturday. His text had been cleared as consistent with Key’s upcoming speech. No one, not even a farmer, challenged him from the floor.

Thompson told the conference: “It’s about taking a realistic attitude to the management of risk,” and likened it to insuring your house against the (unlikely) possibility of fire. “We will be judged as a member of the international community and as exporters on our response.”

Thompson went on to promote the sort of numerical target Helen Clark and David Parker (and Key) have so far avoided: “National is looking at a 50 per cent reduction [in greenhouse gas emissions] by 2050.”

Meanwhile, there is a Budget next week on which the Government is pinning much hope. Expect lofty climate change rhetoric. Six months ago that might have got the jump on National. Now the picture is much murkier.

It will be interesting to see what is in the Budget – will it be rhetoric, or substance? And more importantly will the substance stand up to a decent cost benefit analysis?