Australia could be about to leapfrog NZ on climate targets
Photo:
RNZ / Mark Papalii
A conservative Australian politician turned climate leader has told New Zealand ministers it is in their interests to do more on climate change.
Australian climate change authority chair Matt Kean - a former top minister for the New South Wales Liberal Party - met with Resources Minister Shane Jones and Energy and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts while he was in New Zealand to attend the Green Property Summit.
"My message to them was we want to encourage them, we want to support them and we want to share ideas about how we could lower cost of living pressure for New Zealand households and business, how we could create new jobs and opportunities for New Zealand at the same time as reducing emissions," he said.
"My message to conservatives both in Australia and abroad is when it comes to taking action on climate change, if you do it in an economically rational way there is also a political dividend to be gained."
Australia could be about to leapfrog New Zealand on the ambition of its climate targets, as it bids to win the right to host the COP31 global climate summit in 2026
.
New Zealand's international climate target for 2030 - cutting emissions by 50 percent - is currently ahead of Australia's 43 per cent target, with both countries using 2005 as a base year.
But New Zealand has adopted a target for 2035 of cutting planet-heating gases by 51-55 percent, only slightly above its 2030 target, while the Australian climate change authority has consulted on a target of between 65 and 75 per cent.
Kean described New Zealand's ambition as "largely static".
Australian climate change authority chair Matt Kean.
Photo:
Supplied / Climate Change Authority
He could not divulge where Australia would land on its 2035 target but he said beating New Zealand - and then some - should be achievable and good for Australia.
"Obviously Australia wants to do its bit to meet this challenge, but we also think it's in our economic interests to grab the capital that is available internationally to build the industries and opportunities that Australia wants to realise for the future," Kean said.
"Our national interests as a country on the front line of the impacts climate change are to be part of a global effort to reduce emissions, but it's also in our national interests to build industries, attract investments and create jobs as a result of this global economic transition."
He said the same applied to New Zealand, and he hoped to see more competition between the countries on climate action.
"There's always been a healthy and friendly rivalry between our two countries on the sporting field and hopefully that expands to meeting climate challenges."
Kean said he was grateful for the chance to meet Jones and other government ministers and MPs.
He was supportive of a proposal for government subsidies for New Zealand homeowners to replace their gas and inefficient heaters with heat pumps, which the Green Building Council said would
save the country $1.5 billion a year
.
Australia had its own challenges with gas availability, but unlike New Zealand it had subsidies for alternatives such as residential solar panels, electric storage batteries and hot water heat pumps.
Building Council chief executive Andrew Eagles told
Morning Report
that although New Zealand households were making progress in the adoption of heat pumps and decreasing purchases of gas hot water systems, commercial and residential natural gas/LPG consumption was still climbing - leaving some gas-reliant businesses facing closure.
"It's a huge talking point in Australia as well, we've got more gas than pretty much anywhere else on Earth but because it's all contracted offshore there's a shortage of gas for Australian businesses and families and that's putting enormous pressure on household bills," said Kean.
"We were trying to share some of our learnings from our time in government and how we addressed it and also to hear where the New Zealand government was coming from as well."
He said governments had a role to play in the energy market.
"In Australia, my preference was always for less government intervention but we had to look at what government not being involved could look like, and certainly in the energy transition the private sector wouldn't always take on the risk that was required," he said.
"The government putting the policies in place that facilitated the private sector meant savings for business, savings for households and a better outcome."
RNZ has approached Jones' office for comment.
Australia has overtaken New Zealand for EV sales
on the back of more supportive government policy and has long been ahead on rooftop solar with almost a third of households having solar panels.
However its electricity sector as a whole still
burns much more coal and gas
than New Zealand's.
Australia's international climate targets do not cover its fossil fuel exports, because the coal and gas it produces for export are burned elsewhere.
That's in contrast to New Zealand's export dairy sector, which produces most of its emissions inside New Zealand. (However international flights for tourism are excluded from New Zealand's targets).
As one of the world's biggest coal and gas exporters, Australia's fossil fuel exports produce around three times as much climate-heating gases as activities within Australia,
according to one study
.
A landmark opinion from the International Court of Justice has declared
major fossil fuel producers could be liable for reparations
to countries damaged by climate change.
Kean said Australia needed to be ready to replace its fossil fuel exports.
"The reality is the fossil fuels we are exporting are not going to be at the same level of demand as is currently the case, so we need to prepare for this transition and start to build other exports that can continue to grow Australia's GDP," he said.
He said Australia had "periodic table" of elements in its ground to draw on.
"We recognise that China, Korea, Japan, some of our big takers of Australia's fossil fuel, are changing the things they want to use to power their economies and the reality is we're really well placed to meet their new needs, because of our abundant renewable energy resources."
Kean said his message of saving money and energy while cutting emissions received a good reception from Jones, a minister who has
previously described climate concern as "hysteria"
.
Kean was a member of the conservative Liberal Party and former New South Wales Treasurer and Energy minister before chairing the climate change authority.
He said his message to conservatives in Australia and New Zealand was that there were political dividends to be gained from progressive action on climate change.
"In the state of New South Wales where I hail from, the forward-thinking climate policies that the conservative government put in place have now been adopted by the progressive government, so the policies are surviving political cycles, and what we have been seeing at a national level is the party that advocated for stronger action on climate change get a huge and thumping majority, whereas the conservative party that looked to backslide when it came to climate action lost a whole lot of seats in their traditional heartland to climate friendly independents."
The climate authority's final recommendation on Australia's 2035 target is due to be provided to Australian Climate and Energy Minister Chris Bowen within the next month.
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Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
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The incident at the Wellington brothel happened at 7pm on 11 July. Police Comms was notified the following day at 5.40pm. Ten minutes later the National Command and Coordination Centre was alerted and then the District Command Centre. At 6.15pm on 12 July an email was then sent to a large number of senior police leaders, including former Police Commissioner Andrew Coster, Deputy Commissioner Jevon McSkimming and others. "Police Comms have been called by an informant who works for an escort agency. The informant has found images on a client's phone of naked females, including one very intoxicated female that appear to have been taken with the consent of those photographed/filmed. "The client is allegedly Michael FORBES who is the Senior Press Secretary for the Hon Louise Upston, the Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector, Minister for Social Development and Employment, and Minister for Child Poverty Reduction. 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The documents included an investigation summary, which said on 12 July 2024, Wellington Police received a complaint that Forbes had covertly made an audio recording the previous day while engaging the services of a sex worker. "The informant advised police that they had taken two mobile phones from Forbes, one believed to be a personal phone, the other a work device. The informant also reported finding other audio files, images and videos that caused concern." The informant was spoken to by police and both phones were taken. "Once it was established that Forbes was a senior press secretary at Parliament, procedural escalation notifications were made that evening. "The Wellington District Command Centre was advised, as was the duty inspector." On 13 July, a detective obtained search warrants to examine the two cell phones. "The suspected offence was making an intimate visual recording, being an offence against section 216H of the Crimes Act 1961." On 15 July, a detective visited Forbes and advised him of the police investigation. During that visit Forbes provided access codes for the phones. On 18 July, a detective examined the phones. "Located within both phones were numerous videos, screenshots and photos of unidentified females, some in various state of undress, and exposed breasts were visible in multiple videos. "It was apparent to detectives that some images were taken in, and from, public places, including a gym. Some images were also taken through street facing windows of unidentified women, dressing (undressing) themselves, and who were visible from the waist up." Christopher Luxon and Louise Upston. Photo: Marika Khabazi The summary said the examination of the phones did not identify evidence of criminal offending. On 18 July, Forbes met with a detective and the phones were returned to him. "He was also provided copies of the search warrants that had been obtained. "During the meeting it was suggested that Forbes should delete some of the images on his phones, and he began doing so. Police also stressed the onus was on him to inform his employer." On 19 July, police provided an update to the complainant. On 6 August, police also provided an update to another staff member at the brothel. "They expressed frustration and disappointment with the outcome," the summary said. In an earlier statement, van den Heuvel earlier said that as part of the investigation, police obtained a search warrant to seize two of his phones. On examining the phones, police found a number of photos and videos of women in public spaces, and what appeared to be women in private addresses, taken from a distance away, van den Heuvel said. "Police considered the available evidence and concluded it did not meet the requirements for criminality, and therefore charges could not be filed. "The individual concerned voluntarily spoke with police and admitted to taking the images and recordings. He was reminded of the inappropriateness of his behaviour and encouraged to seek help." Forbes also deleted the images in the presence of police. "Police acknowledge this man's behaviour was extremely distressing for the women involved and would like to reassure them that any new information will be thoroughly considered. "Based on the initial report and available evidence to date, police are unable to progress the matter further." Van den Heuvel said that any new information regarding Forbes would be "thoroughly considered". When earlier asked why police did not alert the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) after executing a search warrant on a government-issued phone, the department said: "We are still gathering facts and will look into all of this as part of our deep dive." The DIA said all Ministerial Services staff were subject to standard pre-employment checks when they were first employed. These included reference checks, serious misconduct checks and a criminal conviction check. In addition, security clearances were required for some positions in ministers' offices. The department said these checks were completed when Forbes was first employed by Ministerial Services and were not required for the later temporary assignment to the prime minister's office. "We acknowledge staff may be unsettled or feel their safety may have been compromised. We are committed to supporting our people and ensuring they feel, and are, safe at work." Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said the incidents that were investigated by police but did not lead to any charges occurred after he was vetted to work for Social Development Minister Louise Upston. "He has an obligation to actually declare those issues or those incidents to us - that didn't happen which is why his employment would have been terminated, obviously," Luxon said in a media conference at Parliament in June. "But there is a good question about making sure, and I have asked specifically for DIA to look at vetting processes." He added that the expectation was on Forbes to have raised the incidents with the prime minister's office "because it impacts the office and the reputation of the office, for obvious reasons, but that did not happen". Forbes moved from Upston's office to the prime minister's in February this year and "had the vetting that he needed to come into the Beehive". "We will look at that to make sure that there is anything else we could have done differently in that vetting." Luxon would not discuss what level of security clearance Forbes had in the Beehive. Luxon also had questions about whether the investigation should have been elevated by police to the Beehive. 'We have to take this incident and understand what has happened here and how it happened, and what more can we do about it. "I think it is a legitimate question to say, what can we look at between the inter-agency processes, between the different agencies, whether it is police, whether it is the SIS or whether it is Ministerial Services." Forbes earlier offered an apology for the harm his actions caused to women. "I want to offer my sincerest apologies to the women I have harmed," he said in a statement. "In the past, I was in a downward spiral due to unresolved trauma and stress, and when confronted with the impacts of my behaviour a year ago, I sought professional help, which is something I wish I had done much earlier. "What I failed to do then was make a genuine attempt to apologise. Instead, I tried to move on without offering those I had harmed the acknowledgement, accountability, or amends they deserved. I recognise how wrong that was." Forbes said he spent the past year "reflecting on how I may have affected these women's sense of safety and ability to go about their lives and work". "No one should ever feel violated, unsafe, or disrespected, especially in spaces where they should feel secure, and I am truly sorry for contributing to an environment where women may have felt otherwise," he said. "The therapy I've received over the past year has helped me to understand the roots of my behaviour and begin addressing the patterns that led to it. This is a long-term commitment to change that I take very seriously. "I understand that my past actions may have undermined the trust people place in me. So, I have resigned from my job to focus on the work I need to do." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
