Latest news with #ParisClimateAccords
Perth Now
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Perth Now
‘Weird:' Kean unleashes on Coalition MPs
Former NSW treasurer Matt Kean has lashed his former federal colleagues, saying they risk 'electoral oblivion' if the opposition choses to abandon bipartisan support on net zero. The Liberal state MP turned Climate Change Authority chair unleashed a series of harsh barbs at Coalition MPs, who've called for the party to dump net zero. He labelled MPs with the view as 'weird' and warned it would result in 'electoral oblivion'. Mr Kean noted the Coalition had lost seats to 'candidates and parties advocating for strong action on climate change' and urged the party to 'ignore the noisy forces advocating for fringe policies'. 'Let me say, as the former Liberal Treasurer in the largest economy in the nation, that it is a sign they are heading for electoral oblivion,' he told the ABC's Afternoon Briefing. 'The Coalition needs to reflect the mood of the Australian public which is clearly saying they want strong and decisive action on climate change in our national interest. 'There are a number of ways they can achieve that and the sooner they start talking about those policies, the sooner of our path back to electoral relevance.' Former NSW treasurer said the Coalition risked 'electoral oblivion' if it chose to abandon its commitment to net zero. NewsWire/ David Swift Credit: News Corp Australia Mr Kean, who passed NSW's state legislation to cement its net zero targets, also said the CCA was 'close' to handing down its recommendation on the highly-anticipated 2035 carbon reduction target, with the body consulting on a figure between 65 to 75 per cent. Currently Australia must reach net zero by 2050, as per the Paris Climate Accords, with Energy Minister Chris Bowen previously saying he was 'confident' Australia would reach the interim 2030 goal of reducing emissions by 43 per cent. Following the Coalition's election walloping, which has reduced the opposition to a paltry 43 seats in the lower house, National MPs and prominent members of the Liberal Party's right called for support for net zero to be dumped. WA Liberal MP Andrew Hastie said it was a 'straitjacket that I'm already getting out of', while Nationals MPs Matt Canavan and Barnaby Joyce respectively labelled it as 'ridiculous' and 'utterly untenable'. WA Liberal MP Andrew Hastie said the Coalition's commitment to net zero was a 'straitjacket'. Richard Dobson/ NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce has also been vocal against net zero. NewsWire/ Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia Appearing after Mr Kean's segment, Liberal Flinders MP Zoe McKenzie wouldn't directly support or rule out abandoning a net zero target, saying the party was reviewing all of its election policies. However she noted that the Coalition did not prove to be electorally popular, despite keeping it pro-net zero stance. 'As you know we have seen quite clearly that we must have a deeper conversation with the Australian population around the platform of policies we took to the last election and we must understand what they wanted to see done differently,' she said.
West Australian
19 hours ago
- Politics
- West Australian
Climate Change Authority chair Matt Kean lashes anti-net zero MPs as ‘weird'
Former NSW treasurer Matt Kean has lashed his former federal colleagues, saying they risk 'electoral oblivion' if the opposition choses to abandon bipartisan support on net zero. The Liberal state MP turned Climate Change Authority chair unleashed a series of harsh barbs at Coalition MPs, who've called for the party to dump net zero. He labelled MPs with the view as 'weird' and warned it would result in 'electoral oblivion'. Mr Kean noted the Coalition had lost seats to 'candidates and parties advocating for strong action on climate change' and urged the party to 'ignore the noisy forces advocating for fringe policies'. 'Let me say, as the former Liberal Treasurer in the largest economy in the nation, that it is a sign they are heading for electoral oblivion,' he told the ABC's Afternoon Briefing. 'The Coalition needs to reflect the mood of the Australian public which is clearly saying they want strong and decisive action on climate change in our national interest. 'There are a number of ways they can achieve that and the sooner they start talking about those policies, the sooner of our path back to electoral relevance.' Mr Kean, who passed NSW's state legislation to cement its net zero targets, also said the CCA was 'close' to handing down its recommendation on the highly-anticipated 2035 carbon reduction target, with the body consulting on a figure between 65 to 75 per cent. Currently Australia must reach net zero by 2050, as per the Paris Climate Accords, with Energy Minister Chris Bowen previously saying he was 'confident' Australia would reach the interim 2030 goal of reducing emissions by 43 per cent. Following the Coalition's election walloping, which has reduced the opposition to a paltry 43 seats in the lower house, National MPs and prominent members of the Liberal Party's right called for support for net zero to be dumped. WA Liberal MP Andrew Hastie said it was a 'straitjacket that I'm already getting out of', while Nationals MPs Matt Canavan and Barnaby Joyce respectively labelled it as 'ridiculous' and 'utterly untenable'. Appearing after Mr Kean's segment, Liberal Flinders MP Zoe McKenzie wouldn't directly support or rule out abandoning a net zero target, saying the party was reviewing all of its election policies. However she noted that the Coalition did not prove to be electorally popular, despite keeping it pro-net zero stance. 'As you know we have seen quite clearly that we must have a deeper conversation with the Australian population around the platform of policies we took to the last election and we must understand what they wanted to see done differently,' she said.
ITV News
2 days ago
- Politics
- ITV News
UN Ocean Conference: America's absence felt as world gathers to discuss climate
Ahead of the conference's opening, Prince William called for more action to protect the ocean, which he said was a "diminishing resource" It is in many ways a painful irony that in the year of the 10th anniversary of the historic United Nations Climate Change Conference - which in the following year 2016, led to the Paris Climate Accords - the UN is holding another landmark meeting in France to address the continuing damage to our planet's health. It is painfully ironic because ten years ago, virtually the whole world, 195 countries, came together to talk, negotiate and agree to some fundamental commitments to reduce the harm humans were doing to the planet. For one thing, it brought together the US, China and Russia as signatories. The idea today that those three countries would come together to lead the world in a common global endeavour, aimed at something beyond their own vital interests, is hard to imagine. So much has changed since the high-water mark of the Paris Climate Accords - the US, for one, pulled out of those commitments. Yet ten years later, thousands of delegates and around 50 world leaders and representatives from around 100 nations began five days of similarly detailed, complex and long-negotiated terms and commitments. However this time, it is focused not so much solely on limiting global warming, but on focusing on how one part of our planet is in many ways the key to what happens to us all - the health of the world's oceans. The Earth, after all, is 70% water. It is why the third United Nations Ocean Conference in the southern French coastal city of Nice, defined by its relation and position on the Mediterranean, campaigners are calling for this to be the "Paris conference of the Seas". Speaking on the eve of the start of the UN Conference, Prince William said: "The truth is that healthy oceans are essential to all life on earth. "They generate half of the world's oxygen, regulate our climate and provide food for more than three billion people." But the Prince said, despite all the challenges, he was still an optimist - because he believed in the optimism of Sir David Attenborough. In front of world leaders like President Macron of France and President Lula of Brazil, Prince William quoted Sir David Attenborough 's words: "If we save the sea, we save our world." The key points of the UN Ocean Conference will be whether the so-called "High Seas Treaty" will be ratified by 60 nations. This needs to happen this year, or it will be very difficult to meet the 2030 target to protect 30% of our oceans and lands. High seas refer to international waters, which make up nearly two-thirds of our oceans. Establishing Marine Protection Areas in these waters is crucial to reaching 30% of ocean protection. Some of the fundamental statistics on the state of our oceans are sobering to say the least. Our oceans are 30% more acidic than in pre-industrial times. They absorb around 23% of annual CO2 emissions generated by human activity, and help mitigate the impacts of climate change. Yet marine pollution reached 17 million metric tons in 2021, a figure set to double or triple by 2040. Furthermore, every year, an estimated five to 12 million metric tonnes of plastic enter the ocean - nearly 90% of litter found on sea floors is single-use plastic. The atmosphere may not be as heady as the Paris Conference was in 2015, and the work and focus on the very specific aims and targets may be more focused and might not have the same sense of occasion. But they have an air of grounded realism of what is politically and economically possible in a very changed geo-political world, where the challenges remain the same.
Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Hindustan Times
Elon Musk and Donald Trump's feud goes public: Timeline of their tumultuous partnership
President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk's relationship seems to have taken a downward spiral in the past few days. The pair that once grabbed every opportunity to praise each other's work have now resorted to engaging in frequent social media spats due to a difference of opinion over Trump's new 'Big, Beautiful Bill'. The confrontation reached a peak on Thursday (June 5), after Musk's exit from the Department of Government Efficiency (DoGE). Considering the events of the past year, it may be hard to believe that Musk hasn't always been Trump's biggest fan. During Trump's first run for presidency back in 2016, Musk openly expressed his support for Democrat candidate Hillary Clinton in an interview with CNBC, labeling her environmental and economic policies 'the right ones'. "I feel a bit stronger that he is not the right guy. He doesn't seem to have the sort of character that reflects well on the United States,' Musk said of Trump at the time. Once Trump beat Clinton in the 2016 race to the White House, Musk retained ties with the federal government due to the close contractual interaction between NASA and his company SpaceX. He was also a part of several White House advisory boards such as Trump's Manufacturing Jobs Council. However, when Trump decided to withdraw from the Paris Climate Accords in 2017, Musk publicly voiced his disapproval of the decision by tweeting, 'Climate change is real. Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world.' Trump, however, felt differently and publicaly called Musk a 'great guy' during a 2020 SpaceX launch in Florida. It was in May 2022, that Musk decided to switch his allegiance from blue to red and publically declared his support of the Republican Party, calling the Democrats a 'party of division & hate'. Even though Musk decided to rally behind the GOP, it didn't automatically ensure his support for Trump as the right man for the job. He instead supported Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a long-time rival of Trump, and even joined a Twitter livestream in May 2023 to support his campaign for the presidency. Despite a social media feud with Trump in 2022, Musk took the call to reinstate Trump's Twitter account after buying the company in October of that year. His account had previously been suspended from the platform following the US Capitol attack on January 6, 2021. This move came four days after Trump announced his third run for the presidency. It was after an assassination attempt during his election rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, that Musk first announced public support for Trump's presidency via a social media post. Trump and Musk came together on an X livestream to share their views on various political topics during which the Tesla CEO expressed a willingness to serve in government by posting a picture of him as a representative of a new department: DoGE. Musk reportedly became the largest spender in the 2024 presidential election by contributing about a quarter of a billion dollars for several Republicans' campaigns, specifically that of Trump. He was then spotted standing next to the presidential candidate in an October rally back at the Pennsylvania location of Trump's failed assassination attempt while wearing a 'Make America Great Again' cap and calling him the only candidate 'to preserve democracy in America'. One of Trump's first moves after returning to the White House was to pass an executive order that materialized DoGE into reality. Musk and former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy were now tasked with identifying and cutting down on wasteful spending and frauds in the bureaucracy. The President also attended a SpaceX 'Starship' launch in Texas during this time to express his support for Musk. January 2025 Trump gave Musk a special shoutout during his election night victory speech by calling him an 'amazing guy' and saying, 'A star is born.' As head of the DoGE, Musk took active measures to cut costs but failed to meet his target of saving up to $1 trillion during his time in office which would have helped cut down on the $36 trillion US debt and possibly circulate stimulus checks among the American population. He was soon included in the President's inner circle as a trusted advisor and regularly attended cabinet meetings or traveled aboard Air Force One. When Trump opponents protested against Musk's company, the President rolled onto the White House's South Lawn in a red Tesla to publically announce support for the car and his friend. He took to social media to applaud Musk for doing a 'FANTASTIC JOB' and said that he would buy a brand new Tesla the very next day. Due to flaking investor confidence in the Tesla CEO's ability to devote time to the company and the lapse of the 130 days for special government employees like Musk, Trump announced that his confidant would soon be leaving DoGE. 'You're invited to stay as long as you want. At some point, he wants to get back home to his cars,' said Trump during a cabinet meeting. During a May 29 CBS interview, Musk expressed his disappointment with several provisions in Trump's new public spending bill which he felt would increase the budget deficit and undermine all the work he had been trying to do at DOGE. 'I was, like, disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decrease it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing,' he said. Trump gave the former DoGE head a farewell the next day as he left office by saying, 'Elon's really not leaving. He's going to be back and forth, I think, I have a feeling.' Once out of office, Musk started voicing his criticism of Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' in harsher terms by labeling it a 'disgusting abomination." Trump subsequently threatened to cancel Musk's governmental subsidies and contracts. Musk clapped back by claiming that Trump would not have won the presidency without him. Musk reshared posts critical of the President on his page including one that demanded Trump's impeachment. During the spar, Trump blamed Musk's social media lash-out on his decision to end tax credits for electric vehicles. The feud reached a peak on Thursday when Musk dropped a bomb by claiming that Trump is intentionally shielding the full release of the Epstein files due to his involvement in the case.
Hamilton Spectator
4 days ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Elon Musk and Donald Trump feud: A breakdown of how they went from bromance to breakup
It has been exactly one week since Elon Musk last stood in the Oval Office. Clad in a shirt that read 'The Dogefather,' Musk gratefully accepted a golden key to the White House from Donald Trump — a parting gift the president said he gave only to 'very special people.' The tech mogul was stepping away from his role at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), officially ending his 130-day tenure at the Trump administration. 'Elon's service to America has been without comparison in modern history,' Trump said at the time. Musk, sporting a black eye he said came from one of his 14 children, returned the praises: 'The Oval Office finally has the majesty that it deserves, thanks to the president.' Days later, both men would tear into the other across social media and live TV. In a salvo of posts on his social media outlet X, Musk claimed Trump is 'in the Epstein files' and that he only won the 2024 presidency through Musk's influence. 'Such ingratitude,' he wrote. Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT! Trump responded by threatening to tear up Musk's government contracts, leading to a 14 per cent plunge in Tesla's stock price by market close Thursday. The feud appeared to have been sparked over disagreements on what Trump has deemed his 'Big Beautiful Bill.' But cracks have been present throughout their decade-long relationship. Musk wasn't always buddy-buddy with Trump. The tech titan backed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in her race against Trump in 2016, and was vocal in his criticisms of the president. Days before the 2016 election, Musk told CNBC : 'He's not the right guy. He doesn't seem to have the sort of character that reflects well on the United States.' Regardless, Trump would appoint Musk to his Strategic and Policy Forum alongside other Silicon Valley CEOs a month later. The bitter feud between the U.S. president and tech billionaire has spilled into another day. The bitter feud between the U.S. president and tech billionaire has spilled into another day. The appointment wouldn't stick; Musk departed from his roles within the administration in 2017, after Trump withdrew from the Paris Climate Accords: 'Climate change is real. Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world,' Musk wrote . Three years later, Musk would vote for Joe Biden over Trump in the 2020 elections, he said. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, U.S. musician Kid Rock and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk pose for a photo as they attend UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York, on Nov. 16, 2024. Musk first signalled his shift to the right in May 2022, after what he said were years of voting Democrat. '(The Democrats) have become the party of division & hate, so I can no longer support them and will vote Republican,' he tweeted . 'Now, watch their dirty tricks campaign against me unfold.' Then, in November — days after purchasing Twitter for $44 billion (U.S.) — Musk used his platform to encourage 'independent-minded voters' to vote for 'a Republican Congress, given that the Presidency is Democratic.' Musk, who had donated to both Democrats and Republicans until that point, began to shift his funding toward right and far-right leaning candidates that year. But his feud with Trump continued, with him suggesting Trump should 'hang up his hat & sail into the sunset' in July of 2022. At a campaign rally, Trump shot back that Musk's companies would be 'worthless' without federal funding. After some debate, Musk decided to support Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the 2024 presidential primaries over Trump; DeSantis even announced his campaign over a glitch-riddled Twitter livecast . But after the governor failed to gain traction among voters, Musk turned his eye to more promising prospects. The legacy of Musk's slash and burn to government lives on. The legacy of Musk's slash and burn to government lives on. Musk and Trump's whirlwind bromance began minutes after a bullet from a would-be assassin grazed the presidential candidate's right ear at a campaign rally in Butler, Penn., on July 13, 2024. 'I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery,' Musk wrote shortly after the incident was reported. The tech titan wasted no time throwing his full support behind Trump and joining him on the campaign trail. The following weeks saw Musk spend a total $288 million to help elect Trump and other Republican candidates, according to the Washington Post . The billionaire also announced he would give away $1 million each day to swing state voters who signed a petition from his political action committee (PAC). U.S. President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk speak to the press as they stand next to a Tesla vehicle on the South Portico of the White House on March 11. After his election victory in November, Trump announced that DOGE — an initiative purportedly meant to maximize efficiency and cut wasteful spending — would be led by Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. The White House confirmed Ramaswamy would step away from the project soon after Trump's second inauguration, leaving Musk as its sole head — although the White House was never clear on Musk's exact role at DOGE. He dreamed of cutting $1 trillion in government spending. Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk with his son X Æ A-Xii join U.S. President Donald Trump as he signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House on Feb. 11. The following weeks saw Musk and his team gut federal agencies and slash government staff. DOGE would dismantle USAID , tear up billions of dollars worth of research funds for cancer and other illnesses and lead to the departures of tens of thousands of government staff . All the while, Musk would garner vast influence within the Trump administration, from flying on Air Force One and participating in Cabinet meetings to showing up at the Oval Office with his young son. 'I love @realDonaldTrump as much as a straight man can love another man,' Musk wrote on X in February. Musk's close association with Trump and his activities at DOGE resulted in public backlash against the billionaire and his companies. Global protests against Tesla led to attacks on dealerships and a plunge in its stock price. Trump soon came to the defence of Musk's company, parading several Teslas at a White House press conference and telling reporters he even bought one of Musk's cars in March — although experts predicted the public support would backfire . Musk's time in the Trump administration wasn't all smooth sailing. In April, Musk got into a public spat over automotive tariffs with Trump's top trade adviser Peter Navarro, calling him a 'moron' and 'dumber than a sack of bricks.' White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stayed out of the feud: 'Boys will be boys, and we will let their public sparring continue,' she said. Later that month, Trump suggested at a cabinet meeting that Musk's time in his administration may be coming to an end . 'At some point, he wants to get back home to his cars,' he said, after praising Musk for his work. The Ontario government won't revive its $100-million contract with Starlink that was cancelled in March in retaliation for Trump's tariffs. The Ontario government won't revive its $100-million contract with Starlink that was cancelled in March in retaliation for Trump's tariffs. That point came just a month later, on May 30, after reaching the maximum amount of days he could serve as a government employee. In that time, DOGE claims to have tallied $180 billion (U.S.) in savings — well short of its $1 trillion goal. Days earlier, Musk told CBS he was 'disappointed' by the price of Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill,' continuing that the legislation would further inflate the U.S. deficit. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill would add $3.8 trillion to the deficit by 2034. 'I think a bill can be big or it can be beautiful, but I don't know if it can be both,' Musk said at the time. The disagreement would soon blossom into an all-out brawl between Musk and Trump. Within 100 hours of his departure from DOGE, Musk fired his first volley at Trump's spending bill (without naming the president directly). 'This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination,' he wrote on X Tuesday. 'Shame on those who voted for it.' Trump shot back Thursday, telling reporters that Musk 'knew every aspect of this bill — better than almost anybody — and he never had a problem until right after he left.' 'False,' Musk retorted mere minutes later . 'This bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that almost no one in Congress could even read it!' President Donald Trump, right, presents a 'key to the White House' to Elon Musk during a news conference in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on May 30, 2025. The tech titan then broadened his attack. 'Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate,' he wrote . 'Such ingratitude.' Trump then took to his own social media platform, Truth Social, writing: 'Elon was 'wearing thin,' I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!' 'The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,' Trump said in a followup post. 'I was always surprised that Biden didn't do it!' In response, Musk threatened to 'immediately' decommission SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft — used to ferry NASA astronauts and supplies to the International Space Station — 'In light of the President's statement about cancellation of my government contracts.' He would later pull back on the threat. Musk also made another accusation. 'Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public,' he said. 'Have a nice day, DJT!' For his part, Trump defended his spending bill, writing on Truth Social: 'It's a Record Cut in Expenses, $1.6 Trillion Dollars, and the Biggest Tax Cut ever given. If this Bill doesn't pass, there will be a 68% Tax Increase, and things far worse than that. I didn't create this mess, I'm just here to FIX IT.' But on Friday morning, Trump signalled he was no longer interested in speaking about his former ally: 'I'm not even thinking about Elon. He's got a problem, the poor guy's got a problem,' he told CNN.
