The UK's head climate advisor has slammed Australia's efforts to reduce green house gas emissions, labelling targets "sad" and a "disgrace".
John Gummer, Lord Deben, the chairman of the UK's Committee on Climate Change, has warned that Australia currently looks like it's on the outside of the international community on climate change.
"Everyone else is willing to help but for goodness sake, you've already done less than other people," he told ABC's The Drum.
"You didn't take on anything like the burden of other advanced countries, so don't pretend you're doing better. You're not, and everyone else outside knows that."
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull recently told ABC Radio that Australia's 26-28 per cent reduction from emission levels in 2005 is comparable to similarly situated countries.
But Lord Deben rejects the argument that Australia is doing well in its reductions on a per capita basis.
"Britain has the fastest growing population in Europe … but what we have said is whatever the population is, whatever the problem is, we have got to do our part."
He dismissed arguments that Australia is a special case as its economy is reliant on the export of emission-rich products.
"All right, sitting there saying that you're a special case, the fact of the matter is climate change doesn't do special cases."
"Climate change isn't going to wait for Australia."
Lord Deben says proposals coming from South Africa are better than those being put forward by Australia.
"Australia's promising something much less than the US, wildly less than any European country, less than Mexico, less than Brazil, less than China."
"Australia's going to go to the Paris talks with one of the least ambitious targets."
Deben, who repeatedly called for Australia's leadership on climate change under Tony Abbott's prime ministership, says a return to the consensus position should be possible with the change at the top of the Coalition.
"Conservatives around the world are of course very much in the lead of battling against climate change."
"I think that the world would be extremely pleased if Australia showed that it was thinking seriously about trying to bring the parties together, to find a common view."
Lord Deben says that Australia could make more efficient use of energy and pursue opportunities in solar and wind power.
Deben also recommended that the Turnbull Government reintroduce an independent climate change advisory committee with Professor Tim Flannery as chair.
"The extremes of weather, which you are experiencing here in Australia, are going to get worse and worse."
"The science is now absolute. Nobody really in the world disagrees with the fact that climate change is happening and human beings are causing it."
"If we don't work together to do something about it, then frankly we are going to find ourselves in a really serious position."
Australia is due to attend the UN Climate Change Summit in Paris in December this year.
Amy Sherden is a producer at ABC News 24.
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