Page 435 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 4 March 2008
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
MADAM TEMPORARY DEPUTY SPEAKER: Mr Smyth!
MR GENTLEMAN: even Mr Smyth. Recognising the hard reality of a small revenue base and higher than national average costs for service delivery, the government embarked upon a major reform program to secure the future. While this process involved many hard decisions, it has, without doubt, rebuilt the economic foundations of the ACT budget through which we must fund vital services for all Canberrans.
Supporting the responsiveness of the ACT economy are the activities of the ACT Skills Commission, established in November 2006. Skills shortages are an issue facing all jurisdictions. However, the ACT Skills Commission last year released its draft report detailing initiatives and practical solutions for the ACT’s short and long-term skills issues. These initiatives, coupled with the skilled and business migration and the live in Canberra programs, will support the ACT’s future employment base.
Other areas where this government has planned for the future include climate change and water security. In July 2007 the ACT government launched Weathering the change—the ACT climate change strategy for 2007-2025. The strategy sets an emissions target reduction of 60 per cent, from 2000 levels, by 2050. This target is consistent with that adopted by most international and Australian jurisdictions, but we also aim for a milestone of reducing emissions back to 2000 levels by 2025.
Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, you are probably aware of the Garnaut interim report. I was able to attend Professor Ross Garnaut’s lecture at ANU just last year and Professor Garnaut said that Australia should promote strong global action on climate change and be prepared to match the commitments of other developed nations. He said that, contrary to the conventional wisdom which has dominated Australian debate over the past decade, comprehensive global efforts to reduce emissions will play to Australia’s strengths. It is in Australia’s interests, Professor Garnaut said, for the world to adopt a strong and effective position on climate change mitigation.
The interim report provides early insights from the Garnaut climate change review’s work to date as a basis for community discussion and before the recommendations are finalised for the final reports later this year. The report states that Australia’s interest in strong global action stems from its “exceptional sensitivity to climate change” and its “exceptional opportunity to do well in a world of effective global mitigation”. “We have many resources and skills that will allow us to convert strong global action into an economic opportunity,” said Professor Garnaut. He continued:
We have a first-rate skills base in areas related to innovation, management and financial services. We have rich renewable energy resources. We are among the world’s largest exporters of uranium and natural gas which can benefit from the low-emissions’ efforts of other nations. And our agricultural sector emits less than other developed countries.
By contrast, Australia would be the big loser—possibly the biggest loser among developed nations—from unmitigated climate change.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .