Greens refuse to scale back carbon tax.   
May 6, 2012.  THE AGE.

AAP

The Australian Greens are flatly refusing to renegotiate aspects of Labor's carbon tax, insisting a compensation package will adequately cover additional costs to most households.   

The minor party also warned that the government's budget, due to be delivered on Tuesday, had been designed around the tax.

The federal government is under pressure from within its own ranks to address the impact the carbon tax is likely to have on the cost of living from July 1.


Labor MPs believe the carbon tax is killing the government in the electorate where support for the ALP is at near-record lows.

Speculation is rife that a significant number of them, including some who backed Julia Gillard over Kevin Rudd in February's leadership showdown, are looking at dumping the prime minister and scaling back the $23-a-tonne carbon tax.

Greens leader Christine Milne is having none of the latter, even though she concedes her party might have to renegotiate a post-2010 election agreement with a new prime minister.

"We won't be renegotiating the clean energy package," she said on Sunday, adding it was something the minor party had fought really hard to negotiate.   

Senator Milne said the package's compensation measures were designed to cover the higher costs households would bear because of the tax.

Some low-income families and pensioners would be over-compensated, she said.

Senator Milne warned that the government's budget, including an increase in the low-tax threshold, was at risk if the carbon tax package was scaled back.   

"You can't actually just fiddle with one part of the carbon price without fiddling with the whole package," she said.

Finance Minister Penny Wong admits the carbon tax is a challenge for the government.

"There's no doubt it's a difficult policy but I think it's an important reform for the future," she said on Sunday.

Steep hikes in electricity and gas charges have preceded the yet-to-be-felt impact the carbon tax will have on household power bills.

Senator Milne attributes those increases to infrastructure costs but acknowledges there was a "widely-speculated" view that the carbon tax was to blame.

"But that's really up to the government and the Greens and the corporate sector, to go out and be truthful about what's going on."

The Greens leader reiterated her view that a future coalition government would not be able to repeal the tax.   

"It won't be blown up," she said.

Senator Milne refused to acknowledge there might be a special case for a number of surprise names included in a government list of Australia's 250 biggest polluters.

La Trobe University, Brisbane City and ethanol producer Shoalhaven Starches are among the entities that will have to pay the carbon tax from July 1.

"They won't be cut slack in terms of the threshold," she said of polluters emitting more than 25,000 tonnes of carbon emissions.   

"If you are going to make rules saying that there is a limit and above that, you'll pay, then that's the case."

© 2012 AAP

Quote:

Nice Try Better Luck Next Time

The Carbon Tax Will Be Here To Stay.

The plan is for only 2 or 3 years of fixed price before going to a carbon trading scheme, In my view the fixed price is a much better system.

Nobody will ever pay a cent in tax during this process and no money ever goes to the Australian Tax office, I find it difficult to justify the term carbon tax.

It is dishonest to call it that.

Hyper Greens push for a Carbon Tax and world Government domination, whist moderates just clean up the beach...

You wish! Tony Abbott, the rightful PM, will rid us of this pathetic, shambolic and fradulent tax, which will do nothing to help the temperature, but will affect our economy and standard of living. I wonder why the red-headed bitch was stupid enough to do it in the first place. Did she really think that we were going to forgive her? Did she think we'd actually be that stupid? She fell for the Green's BLUFF hook, line and sinker, as of they would withdraw support and cross over to the Coalition. She has only set the Labor party back a generation, if not more.

Andrei.Hicks wrote on May 7^th, 2012 at 12:23pm:

You really are a crack-head.

9/11 was indeed a revenge attack. Karma and all that. What comes around goes around. Treat people how you would like to be treated, that too.

That's why I don't have to worry about terrorists, I treat people with respect and I get it back.