Now You See Them, Now You Don't

Crikey - Comment

While Australia's political leaders trade barbs on climate change, rising seas have swallowed five of the Solomon Islands.




The Coalition announced its big election agenda this week with nary a mention of climate change. Bill Shorten, whose party has finally committed to an actual plan to combat climate change and significantly reduce carbon emissions, capitalised on the omission.
"[Malcolm Turnbull] famously said that he did not want to lead a party that was not interested in climate change. Now he has airbrushed climate change out of his presentation altogether," Shorten said.
Turnbull hit back, claiming the Coalition's uninspiring target was enough, and that Labor's plan would cause electricity prices to rise.
And besides, he said, Australia had committed to the Paris agreement and would review its targets again later, in concert with the international community.
"The way these targets will rise in the future … is by mutual agreement. So one nation will say, 'We'll go up a bit more if you go up a bit more.' That is the way these agreements are put together."

Tell that to the Solomon Islands …