Time to move forward – and stop this CPRS
1st December, 2009
The Nationals will continue to campaign against the Rudd Labor Government’s Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme on every day between now and election day.The Leader of The Nationals, Warren Truss, has congratulated Tony Abbott on becoming Leader of the Liberal Party today. He thanked Malcolm Turnbull for his service to the Coalition and wished him well for the future.
Tony Abbott has considerable parliamentary experience and the skills to bring the Liberals together in these difficult times. The Nationals look forward to working with Tony Abbott to mount a strong campaign for the next election.
“The Nationals have had a consistent position on this matter from day one. We have not – and will not – support a tax on everything that does nothing to help the environment,” Mr Truss said.
“Shuffling pieces of paper between traders and bankers will not lower sea levels. The Great Barrier Reef will not be saved by taxing the Australian coal industry out of existence. More expensive food and electricity prices here - and not overseas - just makes Australia uncompetitive.
“The Australian people are speaking with an increasingly loud voice on this matter.
“Based on the sheer volume of emails and calls to my office and those of other Nationals (and Liberals), the people are concerned about this tax because they do not understand it, they believe they will be unfairly slugged by it and they know that it will do nothing to reduce global emissions.
“The Nationals are a practical party with the interest of the regions top of mind. We want to play a part to deal with environmental issues but not at the expense of regional people.
“It is time to drill down to what this new tax is all about and what damage it will cause. The Nationals have been doing that for more than a year and will be intensifying its efforts in coming weeks and months,” Mr Truss said.
“The Nationals are a practical party with the interest of the regions top of mind. We want to play a part to deal with environmental issues but not at the expense of regional people.
“It is time to drill down to what this new tax is all about and what damage it will cause. The Nationals have been doing that for more than a year and will be intensifying its efforts in coming weeks and months,” Mr Truss said.
